Free Republic

The consumer price index rose at a seasonally adjusted 0.6% for the month, putting the one-year pace at 3.8%, the highest since May 2023. Excluding food and energy, the core CPI increased 0.4% and 2.8%, respectively, keeping inflation well above the Federal Reserve's 2% goal. Though energy and in particular gasoline has been much of the headline story, inflation pressures also came from a variety of other areas. The report also contained bad news for workers, as real average hourly wages slipped 0.5% for the month and fell 0.3% annually. "Inflation is the key drag on the U.S. economy now,"...

Greenspan says floating China's currency not helpful to US trade US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Friday that the soaring trade deficits probably would not be helped by China revamping its currency system. Answering questions following a speech he delivered to the Economic Club of New York, Greenspan said that a move by China to revalue its currency "probably quite unlikely" to reduce the US overall trade balance. Greenspan said that that is because US companies are likely to turn to other countries, such as Thailand or Malaysia for goods, rather than US producers. "So essentially what...