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Inflation rate offers a little good news for Harris

​Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris gestures as she speaks during a presidential debate with Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., September 10, 2024.

Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris gestures as she speaks during a presidential debate with Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., September 10, 2024.

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

US inflation fell to 2.5% in August – down from 2.9% in July – which is expected to lead the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week. That could help Kamala Harris in the run-up to the presidential election.


It was the fifth straight annual decrease in consumer prices. From July to August, prices rose just 0.2%. Core prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.3% in August. The increase was slightly lower than estimated, which means economists are now expecting the Fed to cut interest rates by a quarter point. They are now at a 23-year high of 5.25 to 5.5%.

The drop in inflation is a small bit of good news for Harris, since cost-of-living concerns are top of mind for swing-state voters. If a rate cut helps boost wages, that could help the Democrats even more in an environment where over 50% of Americans wrongly believe the country is in a recession.

But good economic news doesn’t produce miracles. The Bank of Canada has cut rates three times this summer, without budging Justin Trudeau’sterrible poll numbers.

GZEROMEDIA

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