Inflation indicators in the US continue to lay the groundwork for more measured increases in the Fed’s path.
In the US, core PCE rose 4.4 percent year-on-year in December, in line with expectations.
Personal expenditures, on the other hand, contracted by 0.2 percent in December, contrary to the expectations of a 0.1 percent contraction.
The overall gauge rose 5 percent year-over-year, still well above the Fed’s 2 percent target, though both hit their slowest pace since late 2021.
Compared to a month ago, the core indicator increased by 0.3 percent, while the overall PCE price index increased by 0.1 percent. Both came almost entirely from services, as commodity inflation continued to decline.
On the other hand, individual spending, adjusted for changes in prices, fell 0.3 percent in December. On the other hand, inflation-adjusted spending for goods fell by 0.9 percent, while spending on services was the first month since January 2022 that there was no increase.
The median assumptions in the Bloomberg survey of economists were for a 0.3 percent increase in the core PCE price index and no change in the overall measure on a monthly basis.
