The leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), continues to remain above $75,000 despite the uncertainty stemming from the US-Iran conflict.
As the war between the two countries continues, concerns about inflation stemming from energy prices are also increasing.
At this point, the Fed announced its April interest rate decision yesterday and kept it unchanged, as expected.
While the Fed is said to be prepared to decide in either direction in the face of inflation risk, Wall Street investors have begun betting on the possibility of a Fed interest rate hike this year following hawkish signals from Fed officials.
As expectations of an interest rate hike increase, the February data on Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), which the Fed closely monitors when making its interest rate decisions and is considered a leading indicator of inflation, has been released.
Accordingly, the personal consumption expenditure data for March were as follows:
Core Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (Annual) Announced 3.2% – Expected 3.2% – Previous 3.0%
Core Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (Monthly) Announced 0.3% – Expectation 0.3% – Previous 0.4%
Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (Annual) Announced 3.5% – Expected 3.5% – Previous 2.8%
Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (Monthly) Announced 0.7% – Expected 0.7% – Previous 0.4%
According to The Kobeissi Letter, the Federal Reserve’s measure of inflation, March PCE inflation, rose to 3.5%, reaching its highest level since August 2023. Core PCE inflation rose to 3.2%, its highest level since November 2023. In the first month of the Iran-Iraq conflict, US inflation reached its highest level in three years.