40-Year High
| To view this email as a web page, click here. 
 What's Happening Today Good morning! It's Kristin with your daily morning digest.
In a blow to consumers' wallets, inflation rose 0.6% last month, and 7.5% since last year—the biggest annual increase since 1982, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) latest report on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI measures the rising costs of consumer goods and services in the United States, and serves as an important gauge of inflation in the country. Today's CPI numbers were higher than expected. Economists had expected a 0.4% increase in January, and 7.2% from a year ago.
The core inflation rate, which excludes more volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.6% in January, and 6% from last year. That 6% annual jump was also the largest in 40 years, and shows that costs surged across the board, as prices for the majority of items in the index climbed. And while gas (all types) was one of the few measures to see prices decline in January, it's still a whopping 40% higher than a year ago, the BLS reported.
Stocks are falling on the news, as rising inflation rates bolster the Federal Reserve's argument for raising interest rates. Meanwhile, bond yields are rising ahead of rate hikes, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note jumping to 1.98% after a sell-off in Tuesday and Wednesday's trading sessions.
- Kristin
Editors' Picks
Off the Charts Wondering where first-time homebuyers are getting the money for today's increasingly exorbitant down payments? Those stimulus checks most of us received from the government, for one.
A recent survey of 215 first-time buyers shows what some economists have suspected all along—that many people took those pandemic relief checks (three rounds totaling up to $3,200 per person in 2020 and 2021) and applied them toward down payments. As the chart below shows, it was the second-most common answer the real estate firm Redfin received from survey respondents who were asked how they accumulated the money for a house.  Number of the Day  2 - That's how many times Starbucks has raised its prices in the last three months, and the coffee giant isn't done.
SPONSORED BY DISCOVER PERSONAL LOANS Debt is one of the biggest financial challenges Americans face. Find out what you can do to reduce debt and take charge of your finances. LEARN MORE >
More From The Balance  If you're in an accident or collision that only involves one car, you may need to consider a few factors before filing an insurance claim. Here's what to do.  IRS Section 179 covers business deductions for equipment. Learn what equipment qualifies for the deduction and how to claim the deduction on your taxes.  If you don't have plans yet for your tax refund, you might want to convert it into cryptocurrency through a new TurboTax-Coinbase offer.
How can we improve The Balance Today newsletter? Tell us at newsletters@thebalance.com.
Email sent to: spiritofpray.satu@blogger.com
|
0 Response to "40-Year High"
Post a Comment