Annual inflation in the USA slowed down to 5.3% in August

Consumer prices rose 5.3% year-on-year in August and rose 0.3% month-on-month, according to the US Department of Labor. The annual rate was in line with analysts' forecasts, while in monthly terms inflation was expected at 0.4%. Thus, the growth of consumer prices slowed down for the first time since October 2020 – then the indicator was at the level of 1.2%.

The core CPI, which excludes food and fuel prices, rose just 0.1% on a monthly basis and 4% on an annualized basis. Analysts had expected 0.3% and 4.2%, respectively.

Food prices in the US in August rose by 0.4% mom, while energy prices – by 2.7%. On an annualized basis, food prices rose 3.7%, while energy prices rose 41.9%.

It is worth noting that in its monetary policy, the US Federal Reserve usually focuses precisely on core inflation. The slowdown in the growth rate of core inflation will allow the Central Bank not to rush to start curtailing monetary incentives.