{"id":2159916,"date":"2024-01-26T09:03:02","date_gmt":"2024-01-26T14:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/inflation-held-steady-at-2-6-in-feds-preferred-gauge\/"},"modified":"2024-01-26T09:06:24","modified_gmt":"2024-01-26T14:06:24","slug":"inflation-held-steady-at-2-6-in-feds-preferred-gauge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/inflation-held-steady-at-2-6-in-feds-preferred-gauge\/","title":{"rendered":"Inflation remains stable at 2.6% in Fed&#8217;s preferred measure"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Finflation-held-steady-at-2-6-in-feds-preferred-gauge%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2159916&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Inflation Holds Steady at 2.6% \u200bAnnual Rate in December<\/h2>\n<p>The \u200dlatest \u2064numbers from the Bureau of Economic Analysis reveal that inflation remained unchanged at a 2.6% annual rate in December, according to the preferred gauge\u2063 of the Federal Reserve.<\/p>\n<p>While this may\u2063 be a disappointment for the \u200dFed, which \u2063aims \u2062to lower inflation by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-bad-of-a-recession-it-depends-on-the-consumer\/\" title=\"How Bad of a Recession? It Depends on the Consumer\">keeping interest rates high<\/a>, there\u200c are some positive signs. Core \u200dPCE inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, \u200ddropped\u200d to a 2.9% year-over-year rate, surpassing \u200deconomists&#8217; expectations.<\/p>\n<p>Despite a \u2062decline in \u200dprice growth \u200bover the past year, overall inflation\u200b is still above the Fed&#8217;s target of 2% annual price growth.<\/p>\n<p>On a monthly basis, prices increased by 0.2 percentage points in December, following a slight decline\u200d in November. Other recent inflation\u200d reports also showed upward trends.<\/p>\n<h3>Consumer Price Index \u200cand Producer \u200dPrice Index<\/h3>\n<p>The consumer price index indicated that inflation rose to 3.4% for the\u2064 year ending in December 2023, exceeding\u200d economists&#8217; predictions. Additionally, the producer price \u200dindex, which \u2064measures wholesale inflation, increased to\u200d 1% from the previous \u2064month&#8217;s 0.8%.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these figures, the Fed is\u2062 considering a change in strategy. After maintaining\u200d interest rates\u200b since July, the central bank is now \u2062expected to make its first rate cut \u2063in the first quarter.<\/p>\n<p>Fed officials have penciled in three rate cuts\u2062 for next year, although investors \u2064anticipate up \u2063to six downward revisions. However, other sectors of the \u2064economy have remained strong despite higher interest rates.<\/p>\n<p>Gross domestic product grew at\u2064 a 3.3% annual\u2063 rate in the fourth\u200b quarter of 2023, adjusted for inflation, according to the Commerce Department. This brings the year&#8217;s growth to 2.5% in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>In December, the economy added 216,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate stood at 3.7%, historically\u200c low.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Click here to read more from\u2064 The \u200dWashington Examiner.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What\u200b factors, such as higher oil prices and strong consumer demand,\u2063 have influenced the stable inflation trend in the United States<\/h2>\n<p><span>  \u2062 The latest report on inflation\u2064 released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics has\u2063 shown that inflation in\u200d the United States \u2064held steady at\u200d a \u20622.6% annual rate.\u2062 This news comes as a relief to many\u200b economists and policymakers, as it signals that\u2064 the economy is maintaining a relatively \u2062stable\u200b level of price growth.<\/p>\n<p>Inflation, defined as the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and \u200bservices is\u200d rising, is an important economic indicator that can have wide-ranging impacts. A\u2064 moderate level of inflation is generally considered healthy for \u2063an economy, as it encourages consumption and investment by reducing the real value \u2064of\u2063 money over time. However, high levels \u200cof inflation can erode\u200c the purchasing power\u200c of consumers and create uncertainty in the business environment.<\/p>\n<p>The 2.6% annual inflation \u200brate reported for \u200cthis period is within the target range set by the Federal Reserve, which aims \u2063to \u2064achieve an inflation rate of\u200d 2% over \u2063the long run. This suggests that the\u200d current monetary \u200cpolicy implemented by the central bank is effective in maintaining price\u200b stability. The Federal\u200d Reserve has employed a variety of tools, such as adjusting interest rates and conducting open market operations,\u2064 to influence inflation rates.<\/p>\n<p>One factor that has contributed to the \u2063steady inflation rate is the increase in \u2064oil prices.\u2063 Oil prices\u200c have been rising steadily over\u200b the past few months due to various geopolitical factors, such as \u2062tensions in the Middle East and production cuts by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/climate-change-irony-restricting-american-oil-and-gas-output-ultimately-harms-environment-report-says\/\" title=\"Climate Change Irony: Restricting American Oil and Gas Output Ultimately Harms Environment, Report Says\">major oil-producing countries<\/a>. \u200dHigher oil prices lead to an increase \u2064in energy costs, which\u2064 in turn can impact\u2064 the prices of goods \u2063and services across various sectors \u200bof the economy.<\/p>\n<p>Another factor influencing inflation is the level of demand in the economy. Growth in consumer spending has remained relatively strong, supported by\u200c robust job growth, higher wages, and favorable consumer sentiment. This sustained level of demand has put upward pressure on prices, although it \u2062has been moderated by increased productivity and competition in\u200d certain sectors.<\/p>\n<p>It is\u200c worth noting that while inflation has held \u200csteady at 2.6% on \u2062an\u200b annual basis, there have been fluctuations in monthly data.\u2064 For example, certain \u2062months \u200cshowed a slight increase in inflation due to temporary factors\u2063 such as seasonal\u2064 fluctuations \u200bor supply disruptions. However, these \u200dfluctuations have not significantly impacted the overall trend of stable inflation.<\/p>\n<p>Looking ahead, it is important to monitor inflation \u2062trends closely and assess the\u200d potential \u200bimpact on the economy. If inflation were to rise above the target range set by the Federal \u2063Reserve, it may\u200d prompt policymakers to consider <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-new-analysis-shows-my-multi-trillion-dollar-plans-will-reduce-inflation-reduce-inflation-reduce-inflation\/\" title=\"Biden: New Analysis Shows My Multi-Trillion Dollar Plans Will \u2018Reduce Inflation, Reduce Inflation, Reduce Inflation\u2019\">tightening monetary policy<\/a> to curb\u200d excessive \u2062price growth. On the other hand, if inflation remains below the target range, the\u200b central \u200cbank \u2063may choose to maintain current accommodative policies to \u200bstimulate economic activity.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, \u200cthe latest report on inflation in\u2064 the\u2063 United States indicates that inflation has held steady at a 2.6% annual rate. This \u200cis positive\u2064 news for \u2062the\u200b economy, as it suggests that \u2064price\u2062 growth\u200b is stable and within the target range set by\u200b the Federal Reserve. Factors such as higher oil prices \u2062and strong consumer \u200ddemand have influenced this trend. However, it is essential to \u2063continue monitoring inflation trends and adjust policy accordingly to ensure long-term price stability and economic growth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Federal Reserve&#8217;s preferred gauge showed inflation remaining stable at 2.6% annually in December. However, the latest numbers from the Bureau of Economic Analysis indicate that prices did not decrease last month. This could be disappointing for the Fed, which is closely monitoring inflation levels<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2683,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2159916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2159916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2683"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2159916"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2159916\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2159916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2159916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2159916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}