Cooling core inflation will bring US Fed some relief
The core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes food and fuel, is seen rising 0.3% from a month earlier after 0.4% advances throughout the first quarter. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will issue its CPI report on Wednesday. Compared with April 2023, the core CPI is projected to rise 3.6%. While that annual increase would be the smallest in three years, it's still running too fast to placate Federal Reserve policymakers, who want evidence inflation is slowing consistently as they debate interest-rate cuts.