A couple of weeks ago (October 1, 2007) I published a piece declaring inflation as a significant economic threat, just over the horizon.
Today the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its figure for the Consumer Price Index ("CPI".) The CPI is the US Government's official measurement of inflation. U.S. policymakers pay closer attention to another figure released by the BLS, the "Core CPI" figure, which removes housing and energy costs. Many economists see the Core CPI as depicting an unrealistic American economic experience (e.g. for whom are housing and energy costs not part of everyday economic life?)
The 0.3% CPI figure today was higher than the economists' consensus figure of 0.2%.
The bond market has responded this morning with lower prices, dropping yields on the 10-year US Treasury bill to 4.58% -- a rate which is up by more than a quarter since September 7, 2007 (the day on which the BLS released its unemployment figure showing the first net job loss in four years.)
For more on inflation, click here.
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