Inflation dropping
US CPI fell -0.1 per cent in November, after the flat result in October.
Annual inflation therefore fell to 6.5 per cent, from 7.1 per cent last month, in line with market expectations.
That's the 6th consecutive decline, and the lowest annual figure since October 2021.
Core inflation also dropped to 5.7 per cent over the year, which was the lowest level since December 2021.
Source: BLS
Overall, this was a soft figure and exactly in line with market expectations, suggesting that the peak of the interest rate cycle is getting closer, with a 25 basis points increase essentially locked in for next month.
The odd thing was that by far and way the biggest contributor was still rents, which apparently continued to soar.
That seems unusual, because in real time all private market measures show that rents are actually declining, so presumably once this feeds into the official inflation figures then we'll be in inflation freefall.
