Stocks are down on Thursday and investors wondering why will want to check out the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data.
The big news keeping stocks down today is that the all items index increased by 6.5% year-over-year (YOY) in December. While that’s better than the 6.6% reported for November, it’s still higher than traders were hoping for.
Contributing to that increase is the price of food, which is up 11.8% YOY. Consumers will note that eggs were strongly affected by inflation with an 11.1% increase. Energy prices were also up 7.3% YOY, although they are down from the last couple of months.
Why Is the CPI Keeping Stocks Down Today?
There’s no doubt that traders were hoping for better inflation reduction in the December CPI report. Consumers and investors alike have been hoping for a reduction to inflation as the Federal Reserve continues to increase interest rates.
Considering the current inflation rate, it seems likely that more interest rate increases are on the way. The Fed is set to meet again at the end of this month and an interest rate increase will almost assuredly be set then.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell has been strict with his talk of rate increases. The Fed wants to see a further drop in inflation and Powell is willing to take actions that are “not popular in the short term.”
Investors looking for more of the latest stock market news will want to keep reading!
We’ve got all of the most recent stock news that traders need to know about on Thursday! That includes what’s happening with shares of Very Good Food (NASDAQ:VGFC), BigBear.ai (NYSE:BBAI) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG, GOOGL) stock today. You can find out more at the links below!
More Thursday Stock Market News
- Very Good Food (VGFC) Stock Soars 8% Despite Loan Default
- Why Is BigBear.ai (BBAI) Stock Up 260% Today?
- Google Layoffs 2023: What to Know About the Latest Verily Job Cuts
On the date of publication, William White did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
