The June inflation report brought a dose of relief to Wall Street on Tuesday morning, as the headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) matched expectations, while core inflation came in slightly cooler than forecast, reviving optimism for interest rate cuts later this year.
The headline CPI rose 0.3% month over month and 2.7% year over year, exactly in line with the consensus. That marks an acceleration from May’s 2.4% annual rate and the fastest price increase since January.
But the real surprise came from the core readings. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose just 0.2% on the month and 2.9% annually, compared to expectations of 0.3% and 3.0%, respectively.
While still elevated, the softer print gave markets a reason to believe the inflation uptrend might be more contained than …