Inflation Unexpectedly Surges Higher, Putting Pressure on Fed To Keep Hiking

A gauge of consumer prices closely watched by the Federal Reserve showed inflation accelerating in April.

The personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index rose 0.4 percent in April, up from the 0.1 percent rise a month earlier. Economists had forecast a milder increase to 0.3 percent.

Compared with April of last year, the PCE price index is up 4,4 percent, a faster annual pace of inflation than the 4.2 percent recorded in March.

Core PCE prices, a gauge that excludes the volatile categories of food and energy, also rose by 0.4 percent. Many economists look to core prices as a guide to underlying inflationary pressures. In March, core PCE prices were up 0.3 percent.

Compared with a year ago, core PCE inflation is up 4.7 percent, an acceleration from the 4.6 percent annual pace recorded in March. Core PCE prices have been up between 4.6 and 4.7 percent in each of the last five months, indicating that the Fed’s hikes have made no progress in bringing down the rate of inflation.... (Read more)

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