The consumer price index rose 2.3% per year in April, less than economists expected, but still reflects price increases, which still exceeds the Fed's target Reduce inflation The ratio is 2%.
According to economists at financial data firm FACTSET, CPI is expected to grow 2.4% last month last month. CPI is a basket of goods and services, usually purchased by consumers, and it tracks these prices over time.
Over a month, CPI grew 0.2%, lighter than economists' 0.3% rate forecast.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics says housing costs are the main driver of inflation. Despite the lower gasoline prices, energy costs are also higher due to the increased costs of natural gas and electricity.
Economists are looking for early signs that Mr. Trump’s tariffs are circulating to American families. Since tariffs are import taxes paid by U.S. companies, this largely transfers increased costs to shoppers, it is expected that sometimes they will raise prices for consumers.
Earlier this month, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank was taking Waiting method Regarding Mr. Trump's tariffs, he said that this could increase inflation and blunt economic growth. But so far, there has been no tariff impact in the economic data, which is usually backwards as it reflects last month’s activity.
Mr. Trump also announced tariffs, such as his April 2 "Liberation Day" tax and then withdrew from the tariffs. On April 9, he used a pause button 90-day delay, Scaling tariffs to 10% interest rates.
On Monday, the Trump administration and China agreed to temporary but massive easing tariffs over the past few months, Reduce import responsibilities Products made from China range from 145% to 30%.
At the same time, some consumers and businesses Urgent to order items Prior to tariff collection, it is designed to avoid new import duties by load purchases. Therefore, the impact of tariffs may not reappear in economic data within a few months, economists say.
"(i) In fact, April's data may be largely unaffected by President Trump's announcement on Liberation Day," Julien Lafargue, chief market strategist at Barclays Private Bank, said in an email. "This is due to exemptions from goods leaving exporters by April 2, and consumers and businesses rushing to impose forward tariffs in February and March."
"So, both the Fed and global investors must have more patience before they can correctly assess the impact of trade uncertainty on consumer prices," he added.