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Fed votes to hold rates steady, notes ‘uncertain’ impacts from Iran war
WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve on Wednesday voted to hold its key interest rate steady as policymakers navigate their way through higher-than-expected inflation readings, mixed signs on the labor market – and a war. In a widely expected decision, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 11-1 to keep the benchmark federal funds rate anchored in […]
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Expectations for the next Fed rate cut get pushed back after hot inflation report
Construction work continues at the Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve building in Washington, DC, on Dec. 30, 2025. Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images A hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation reading for February had traders contemplating the possibility that the Federal Reserve won’t be lowering interest rates at all this year. Following a Bureau of Labor […]
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Wholesale prices rose 0.7% in February, much more than expected and up 3.4% annually
Wholesale prices rose sharply in February, providing another sign that inflation continues to percolate even aside from rising energy prices. The producer price index, a measure of pipeline costs that producers receive for their products, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.7% on the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Excluding volatile food and energy […]
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The Fed issues its latest interest rate decision Wednesday. Here’s what to expect
Key Points Markets are pricing in a near-zero chance that the Federal Reserve will be cutting interest rates at this meeting — or any other in the near future. Updates to economic and rate projections also aren’t expected to show anything dramatic when the decision is released Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. On top of […]
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Bessent says Treasury is not intervening in oil commodities markets and has no authority to do so
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that the administration has no plans to intervene in financial markets and may not have the authority to do so even if it wanted. In a CNBC interview, Bessent addressed rumors that the Treasury Department or some other arm of government might step in to try to lower oil […]
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Fourth-quarter GDP revised down to just 0.7% growth; January core inflation was 3.1%
A customer shops in a grocery store on March 11, 2026 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle | Getty Images Economic growth was much slower than expected in the final three months of 2025 while core inflation rose to start 2026, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Gross domestic product, a measure of all the goods and […]
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UK economy fails to grow in January ahead of Iran war energy price shock
People visit a lookout point in Greenwich Park, with the Canary Wharf financial district in the distance, during sunny weather but cold weather in London, U.K., on Jan. 2, 2026. Henry Nicholls | Afp | Getty Images The U.K. economy flatlined in January as growth continued to slow even before the U.S.-Iran war brought about […]
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U.S. allows temporary purchases of Russian oil already at sea to stabilize energy markets
Russian supertanker Astro Lupus waits to unload its cargo of the first direct shipment of Russian crude oil on July 3, 2002 in the Gulf of Mexico. Pool | Afp | Getty Images The U.S. on Thursday temporarily authorized the purchase of Russian oil stranded at sea to stabilize energy markets. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott […]
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Markets hopes for Fed interest rate cuts are rapidly fading away
Key Points As both energy prices and inflation fears pop, expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts are sliding. Traders have taken even a September cut off the table and now see only one coming, in December. There are no additional cuts priced in until well into 2027 or even into the early part of […]
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Consumer prices rose 2.4% annually in February, as expected
Prices consumers pay for a broad range of goods and services rose in line with expectations for February, offering a final look at inflation pressures before an oil shock tied to the Iran war rattled the outlook. The consumer price index increased a seasonally adjusted 0.3% for the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at […]
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