Data & financial journalist covering global economics and policy
Rising oil prices are now feeding into U.S. inflation, with energy costs driving a sharp increase in headline CPI for March. As crude climbs above $100 per barrel amid Iran war tensions, the divergence between headline and core inflation is complicating the Federal Reserve’s path on interest rates.
U.S. inflation cooled sharply in November, but the 2.7 percent reading is not considered official after a government shutdown forced changes in how the CPI was calculated.
The August inflation data overlaps with President Trump’s latest round of tariffs on major U.S. trading partners. But while the direct impact is up for debate, beef’s surge suggests tariffs may already be filtering into consumer prices.