


Inflation rose two-tenths of a percentage point to 2.3% for the year ending in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday in an update to the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge.
The rise in the personal consumption expenditures index from 2.1% the month before was in line with economists’ expectations.
But the increase is unwelcome news for the economy and President-elect Donald Trump as he prepares to enter office early next year. It shows the Fed will have to continue working to bring down prices and that inflation could be a lingering problem in the new administration.
On a month-to-month basis, inflation rose 0.2%.
Inflation was the biggest concern on the campaign trail and, according to some analysts, a major factor in Trump besting Vice President Kamala Harris.
Core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.8% on an annual basis, also in line with expectations. Core inflation was 0.3% on a monthly basis.
The rise comes after the Fed met after the election and decided to lower its interest rate target by 25 basis points, or, a quarter of a percentage point. The Fed’s goal is 2% annual inflation.
The rise in PCE inflation comes after the even more closely watched consumer price index also posted an annual increase, its first uptick in inflation in six months. CPI inflation rose 2.6% for the year ending in October.
The latest jobs report was released this month and also brought unwelcome news for the economy.
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The jobs market added just 12,000 jobs in October and the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.
Investors had anticipated job growth to slow to 108,000, in part because of damage from hurricanes and a strike at Boeing, but the report was even worse than expected. Also of note, the private sector shed jobs for the first time since the pandemic.