CPI up 0.1%; Fed reports Dec. 13

The Consumer Price Index increased 0.1% in November on a seasonally adjusted basis, after being unchanged in October, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Dec. 12. 

Over the last 12 months, the all-items index increased 3.1% before seasonal adjustment.

The index for shelter continued to rise in November, offsetting a decline in the gasoline index. The energy index fell 2.3% over the month as a 6.0%-decline in the gasoline index more than offset increases in other energy component indexes.

The food index increased 0.2% in November, after rising 0.3 percent in October. The index for food at home increased 0.1% over the month and the index for food away from home rose 0.4%. 

The index for all items, less food and energy, rose 0.3% in November, after rising 0.2% in October.

Indexes which increased in November include rent, owners’ equivalent rent, medical care, and motor vehicle insurance. The indexes for apparel, household furnishings and operations, communication, and recreation were among those that decreased over the month. (US Labor Department 12/12/23) Consumer Price Index - November 2023 (bls.gov) 

Federal Reserve will report out on Dec. 13 

WASHINGTON - With inflation edging closer to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, its policymakers are considering a decisive shift in policy and cut interest rates next year, possibly by spring. 

Such a move would reduce borrowing costs across the economy, making mortgages, auto loans and business borrowing less expensive. Stock prices have already risen in expectation of cuts. 

Fed Chair Jerome Powell has downplayed rate reductions are nearing.

With the central bank poised to keep its key short-term rate unchanged in its Dec. 13 report, Powell hasn’t signaled conclusively that rate hikes won't be increased. 

In a speech in Atlanta, the Fed chair cautioned it would be premature "to conclude with confidence” that the Fed has raised its benchmark rate high enough to defeat inflation. (The AP 12/12/23) Speculation about eventual rate cuts is rising, but Fed is set to leave interest rates unchanged | AP News