US August PCE Price Index Rises 3.4%, Below Forecast; Core at 3.0%
4▲0 ▼0Impact / 5
The August Personal Consumption Expenditures price index released by the US Commerce Department on the 30th rose 3.4% year-on-year, falling short of the market forecast of a 3.7% increase. Even as crude oil prices surge again amid concerns over a prolonged US-Iran conflict, the pace of growth held steady at the same level as the previous month. The department changed its method for calculating prices of certain items, including software, starting this time, which may have weighed on the index, and the July figure was revised down 0.3 percentage points from the previously reported 3.7% increase. The core index, which excludes volatile energy and food, rose 3.0%, unchanged from the previous month, and the July core reading was also revised down 0.3 percentage points. By category, goods prices rose 3.6%, accelerating from 3.3% the previous month, while energy-related prices rose 16.8%, widening from 15.1% the previous month. With no end in sight to the US-Iran conflict and concerns over prolonged inflation persisting, speculation lingers in the market that the Federal Reserve will proceed with an additional rate hike at its October monetary policy meeting.