The latest data supports the notion that inflation is moving closer to the Federal Reserve's 2% target, with August’s personal consumption expenditure coming in at 2.2%, below the expected 2.3%. Tiffany Wilding, PIMCO managing director and economist, joins“Overall, today's data was sort of broadly in line with expectations… We've come on a string of pretty good inflation readings over the last several months and that was coming after an acceleration in inflation in the first quarter.
She says, “There was a series of shocks post-pandemic that really kind of knocked the economy in various ways, and we're just normalizing from that, and it will take some time in addition. But the thing that isn't normalized is monetary policy,” which is why the Fed is cutting rates. Wilding says historically companies tend to slow hiring in the six months ahead of an election which is “one of the reasons why you've seen a step down in the labor market data, and it suggests to us that we're going to continue to see some weak prints here until we get more clarity after the election. I certainly think the Fed could react to that.
Downton Abbey and Harry Potter star Dame Maggie Smith dies aged 89 - family release heartbreaking statement as tributes pour inAs Wall Street opens for the final trading day of the week, Yahoo Finance markets & data editor Jared Blikre analyzes the top market trends including the S&P 500's 42nd record high during yesterday's trading session and the weakening of the US dollar against the Japanese yen.