Global Economy

The Inflation Habit
Global Economy

The Inflation Habit

Inflation in America: Five years of rising prices have changed how Americans think. A heavily indebted government makes the habit harder to break

September CPI Report: Why Core Inflation at 2.6% Complicates the Fed’s Next Move
Global Economy

September CPI Report: Why Core Inflation at 2.6% Complicates the Fed’s Next Move

Gasoline lifted US consumer prices 0.6% in September, taking annual inflation to 3.7%. Core CPI also beat forecasts, raising Federal Reserve rate hike expectations and weighing on Treasury yields and equities.

Anatomy of a Supply Shock: The Fed Rate Hike You Might Be Misreading
Global Economy

Anatomy of a Supply Shock: The Fed Rate Hike You Might Be Misreading

This piece is part of Understanding Economics, where we take one economic term and explain it through something actually happening right now, rather than a textbook example. Here, that term was a supply shock, the reason the Fed raised interest rates into an oil crisis it has no power to fix.

Fed Raises Rates to 4% as Growth Outlook Firms, Inflation Risk Persists
Global Economy

Fed Raises Rates to 4% as Growth Outlook Firms, Inflation Risk Persists

The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday for the first time since 2023, and every voting member backed the move. The decision followed eight weeks in which inflation data repeatedly ran hotter than forecast, eroding the case for holding rates steady. What sets this decision apart is not the size of the increase but what accompanied it: the committee raised its growth forecast in the same meeting it raised rates, a pairing that is unusual by historical standards and worth examining on its own terms.

Fed Decision Tomorrow: What the September Rate Hike Means for Stocks, Bonds, and Your Portfolio
Finance

Fed Decision Tomorrow: What the September Rate Hike Means for Stocks, Bonds, and Your Portfolio

America's central bank is about to do what it hasn't done in three years. The question for investors isn't whether the Fed hikes, it's what Kevin Warsh says next.

Global Food Prices Are Rising Everywhere at Once. Here Is Why
Global Economy

Global Food Prices Are Rising Everywhere at Once. Here Is Why

Global food prices surged in August to their highest level since 2022 as every major FAO commodity index rose together, with sugar leading a broad-based move driven by European weather damage, El Nino risk, Black Sea disruption and India's sugar import policy.