Soft Inflation Seen As Reason For Another Pause

Today’s inflation data “builds a good case for the Fed to pause again in July and revisit the possibility of a hike in September,” Spartan’s Peter Cardillo tells WSJ. June’s core annual consumer price index was 4.8%, falling bellow 5% for the first time since 2021, he says. “If it continues in the right direction there is a great possibility that the Fed would have achieved its goal.” Cardillo says that, beyond today’s CPI, other indicators show that “the economy is uneven and soft with some sectors already in recession.” He says it is too early to say the Fed has over-tightened, but “they have got to change their tone.”