For the first time in more than a year, the Federal Reserve paused its aggressive campaign to bring down inflation — and left interest rates unchanged. Fed officials, who had raised rates 10 times in a row, said that they were giving themselves time to assess how the economy would react before making further changes.
The move was a recognition that inflation continued to cool, recently hitting its slowest pace in more than two years.
But just because Fed officials are moving into a more patient stage of their fight against rapid price increases does not mean that they are giving up on their push to slow inflation. The officials predicted this afternoon that they might raise interest rates twice more before the end of the year.
“I was really surprised by how meaningfully aggressive the future forecasts were,” my colleague Jeanna Smialek told me. “Two more rate increases this year is more than we had expected”
Fed Chair Jerome Powell said today that the central bank didn’t see substantial progress being made in lowering so-called core inflation, which strips out food and fuel costs. He added that officials were willing to do “whatever it takes” to get inflation down to 2 percent.
Striking the right balance, however, will be challenging. If the Fed fails to raise rates enough, consumers and businesses could end up facing runaway prices. If it lifts them too much, the economy could be forced into a recession.
The judge in Trump’s case has scant experience
Aileen Cannon, the judge assigned to preside over Donald Trump’s classified documents case, has little experience running criminal trials, according to a review by The New York Times. Since 2020, when Trump appointed her to the federal bench, she has presided over just four cases that have gone to trial, and she had not previously served as any kind of judge.
Judge Cannon’s experience is attracting scrutiny over her readiness to handle what is likely to be an extraordinarily complex and high-profile case.
Congressional support for Ukraine aid frays
A bipartisan consensus in Congress around providing huge sums of aid to Ukraine’s war effort is beginning to dwindle as Republicans gain traction in their efforts to limit or block future military assistance.
Right-wing House Republicans have long opposed U.S. support for Ukraine, but until recently they lacked the numbers to thwart any aid packages. Yet the bill that passed this month suspending the debt ceiling set spending limits that strengthened their hand, and increased the political pressure on Speaker Kevin McCarthy to keep a tight lid on federal expenditures.
In related news, American companies are paying around $1 billion a year to Russia’s state-owned nuclear agency to buy enriched uranium that fuels U.S. nuclear power plants.
New obesity drugs come with a side effect of shame
A new class of drugs — including Wegovy and Ozempic — offer the more than 100 million Americans with obesity a chance to shed the weight, while escaping the ruthless trap of fruitless dieting. But there’s a catch, at least socially.
Some people who are prescribed one of the drugs fear others will judge them for receiving injections to treat obesity instead of finding the willpower to lose weight and keep it off. They don’t want to be seen as cheating, even though decades of studies have shown that very few people can lose excess weight and keep it off with lifestyle choices alone.
More top news
International: At least 79 people drowned off the coast of Greece after a large boat carrying migrants sank.
Diplomacy: The State Department said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken would visit Beijing later this week to stress “the importance of maintaining open lines of communication.”
New York: A grand jury voted to indict the Marine veteran who was arrested last month after killing a homeless man on a subway car.
Politics: Donald Trump’s Republican rivals see his federal indictment as a big problem — for them.
Religion: Southern Baptists finalized the expulsion of two churches with female pastors, a move to combat what conservatives see as a liberal drift.
Energy: World demand for oil is likely to drop off sharply over the next five years because of a shift to electric vehicles and cleaner technologies, the International Energy Agency said.
Tech: Google was charged with violating E.U. antitrust laws by using its dominance in online advertising to undercut rivals. Separately, the E.U. took an important step toward passing what would be one of the first major laws to regulate A.I.
Cities: San Francisco’s downtown has seen a mass exodus of retailers in recent months, raising questions about how long it will take city centers throughout the U.S. to recover.
Boycott: Bud Light is no longer America’s top-selling beer.
EVENING WIND DOWN
Decoding celebrity whispers
At the Grammy Awards in February, Ben and Jennifer Affleck had a hushed exchange with each other. It was the kind of private celebrity moment that’s often caught on camera, where facial expressions can be seen, yet words cannot be heard.
But Nina Dellinger, who has been reading lips for a decade, thought she knew exactly what they said. So she posted a video of her interpretation on TikTok, and generated more than 10 million views. Her video, and others like it, helped set off a new social media phenomenon, where lip readers interpret what stars, musicians and royal family members are saying off-mic.
The spotted lanternflies are back
You should squash them, the Department of Agriculture says.
The bug — an invasive species native to Asia that can cause widespread economic harm, primarily by damaging plants — has been spotted again this year on the East Coast. The wine industries in New York and Pennsylvania are particularly concerned that their crops will be destroyed.
Those hesitant to kill lanternflies need to know that the choice is either squash them or let them spread, experts say. The bugs proliferate easily, and they have even appeared on cargo flights to California, where an infestation would be economically devastating.
Dinner table topics
Cormac McCarthy: Our critic writes that he was the last of a generational cohort of writers who redefined American prose.
Off the clock: People are rethinking their relationships not just to work, but to time.
Battle rap: It’s an art form and a sport, as well as an industry that has been slowly growing over the last decade.
A style icon: Jensen Huang, the C.E.O. of Nvidia, is transforming a black leather jacket into a symbol of the A.I. paradigm shift.
WHAT TO DO TONIGHT
Cook: This chopped salad with chickpeas, feta and avocado is a great for those who are less than enthusiastic about leafy greens.
Watch: Inventive riffs on the movie musical and the Western are among the highlights of this month’s under-the-radar streaming movies.
Read: The poet and novelist Luis Alberto Urrea has a guide to reading your way through the U.S.-Mexico borderlands.
Listen: Our garden expert shares the playlist that has helped her stay motivated while working outdoors.
Explore: Jack Johnson, the Hawaii-born singer-songwriter and activist, recommends some places he loves on Oahu.
Look up: These national parks are welcoming stargazers this summer.
Play: Here are today’s Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.
ONE LAST THING
A moon with all of the ingredients for life
You may have never heard of Enceladus — the sixth largest of Saturn’s 146 moons — but it is now considered one of the most likely locations of extraterrestrial life in our solar system. That’s because a team of researchers discovered icy grains on its surface that contain phosphorus, which is believed to be essential for life.
Five other elements are considered necessary for life as we know it, all of which have been spotted, at least tentatively, on Enceladus. But a definitive search for life on the moon would take a new mission that is at least a decade or two away.
Have an organic evening.
Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Matthew
Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
We welcome your feedback. Write to us at evening@nytimes.com.