The Consumer Price Index for February will be reported at 8:30 a.m. ET Wednesday and is expected to show that prices rose only slightly right before the Iran war sent energy costs skyrocketing.
Analysts and economists surveyed expect inflation overall to have risen 0.3% from January. Year over year, inflation is expected to remain tracking at 2.4%. Core inflation, which excludes the often-volatile categories of food and energy, is expected to have declined to a 0.2% month-over-month pace, down from 0.3% in January.
“The February CPI report should continue to show that inflation remains relatively contained,” Bank of America economists wrote in a recent note.
Crucially, February’s report was produced before the U.S. and Israel launched a large-scale attack on Iran on the final day of the month.
The critical Strait of Hormuz, off the southwestern corner of Iran, has been effectively shut down since the war began.
More than 20% of the
...Keep reading this article on NBC News.
