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Wholesale prices rose 0.2% in June, slightly hotter than expected

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Wholesale prices rose 0.2% in June, slightly hotter than expected

A measure of wholesale prices rose more than expected in June as Wall Street assesses when the Federal Reserve will feel comfortable cutting interest rates.

The producer price index climbed 0.2% last month, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting a 0.1% increase for the index. The PPI is now up 2.6% over the past year.

The PPI is a gauge of prices that producers can get for their goods and services in the open market. In June, a rise in the price for services offset a decline for goods.

The reading is an increase from the May number, which was also revised higher. Friday’s report said that the index was unchanged in May as compared with a decline of 0.2% in the original release.

The hotter-than-expected PPI reading runs counter to recent data that shows inflation declining, though economists and investors tend to put more weight on the consumer-focused inflation readings.

Friday’s report comes after the June consumer price index came in cooler than expected on Thursday. The CPI actually showed that headline inflation declined on a monthly basis and now sits at 3% year over year.

The central bank’s next policy meeting is at the end of July, where it is widely expected to hold rates steady. Traders have increasingly dialed in on the September meeting as the likely time for the first rate cut.

The Fed’s preferred inflation reading is the personal consumption expenditures price index. The June PCE data is slated for release on July 26.

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Economics

What would Robert F. Kennedy junior mean for American health?

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AS IN MOST marriages of convenience, Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy junior make unusual bedfellows. One enjoys junk food, hates exercise and loves oil. The other talks of clean food, getting America moving again and wants to eliminate oils of all sorts (from seed oil to Mr Trump’s beloved “liquid gold”). One has called the covid-19 vaccine a “miracle”, the other is a long-term vaccine sceptic. Yet on November 14th Mr Trump announced that Mr Kennedy was his pick for secretary of health and human services (HHS).

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Economics

What would Robert Kennedy junior mean for American health?

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AS IN MOST marriages of convenience, Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy junior make unusual bedfellows. One enjoys junk food, hates exercise and loves oil. The other talks of clean food, getting America moving again and wants to eliminate oils of all sorts (from seed oil to Mr Trump’s beloved “liquid gold”). One has called the covid-19 vaccine a “miracle”, the other is a long-term vaccine sceptic. Yet on November 14th Mr Trump announced that Mr Kennedy was his pick for secretary of health and human services (HHS).

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Economics

UK economy ekes out 0.1% growth, below expectations

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Bank of England in the City of London on 6th November 2024 in London, United Kingdom. The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the primary central business district CBD of London. The City of London is widely referred to simply as the City is also colloquially known as the Square Mile. (photo by Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)

Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

The U.K. economy expanded by 0.1% in the third quarter of the year, the Office for National Statistics said Friday.

That was below the expectations of economists polled by Reuters who forecast 0.2% gross domestic product growth on the previous three months of the year.

It comes after inflation in the U.K. fell sharply to 1.7% in September, dipping below the Bank of England’s 2% target for the first time since April 2021. The fall in inflation helped pave the way for the central bank to cut rates by 25 basis points on Nov. 7, bringing its key rate to 4.75%.

The Bank of England said last week it expects the Labour Government’s tax-raising budget to boost GDP by 0.75 percentage points in a year’s time. Policymakers also noted that the government’s fiscal plan had led to an increase in their inflation forecasts.

The outcome of the recent U.S. election has fostered much uncertainty about the global economic impact of another term from President-elect Donald Trump. While Trump’s proposed tariffs are expected to be widely inflationary and hit the European economy hard, some analysts have said such measures could provide opportunities for the British economy.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey gave little away last week on the bank’s views of Trump’s tariff agenda, but he did reference risks around global fragmentation.

“Let’s wait and see where things get to. I’m not going to prejudge what might happen, what might not happen,” he told reporters during a press briefing.

This is a breaking news story. Please refresh for updates.

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