- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
- O'Brien's 'superstar' Kyprios posts landmark win on Arc weekend
- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
- Thousands march in London in support of Palestinians, 1 year after Oct 7
- Israel readying response to Iran missile attack
- Schutt, Mooney help Australia beat Sri Lanka in Women's T20 World Cup
- Liverpool extend Premier League lead with win at Palace
- Djokovic 'shakes rust off' to make third round of Shanghai Masters
- 'Imperfect' PSG fighting on all fronts - Luis Enrique
- Struggling Pakistan look to thwart adaptable England
- Child 'trampled to death' in asylum seekers' Channel crossing: minister
- Gauff fights back to set up Beijing final against Muchova
- Guardiola claims Premier League won't delay season for Man City
- Israel to mark October 7 attack as Gaza war spreads
- Gauff fights back to reach China Open final
- Recovering Stokes ruled out of first Pakistan Test
- Hezbollah battles troops on border as Israel pounds Lebanon
- Alcaraz, Sinner breeze into third round of Shanghai Masters
- Bagnaia wins Japan MotoGP sprint to cut Martin's lead
- Alcaraz breezes into third round of Shanghai Masters
US inflation slowed in April but prices for many goods rising
US inflation slowed in April, according to new data Wednesday, but Americans continue to see their wallets empty faster when they buy groceries and pay the rent.
President Joe Biden has gone on the offensive, blaming the price spike on Russian leader Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, and announcing a series of steps he hopes will ease the pain.
The conflict and the sanctions imposed on Russia have driven up prices around the world for fuel, grain and fertilizer, raising costs for farmers who in turn are forced to raise prices.
Biden, whose popularity has taken a hit amid the highest inflation in four decades, has labeled the recent surge "Putin's price hike."
He will visit a farm in Illinois on Wednesday to lay out the White House strategy to help food producers, including boosting domestic fertilizer production amid a nationwide shortage.
The latest inflation data offered some good news, as the consumer price index (CPI) slowed slightly last month, jumping 8.3 percent compared to April 2021, after peaking in March at 8.5 percent, according to the Labor Department.
"While it is heartening to see that annual inflation moderated in April, the fact remains that inflation is unacceptably high," Biden said in a statement.
"Inflation is a challenge for families across the country and bringing it down is my top economic priority."
The dip was helped by easing energy costs, as gasoline fell 6.1 percent in April compared to March after the 18.3 percent surge in the previous month.
But gasoline prices at the pump hit a new record on Tuesday, so the news from April may be of little comfort to drivers.
And prices continued to rise last month for a range of goods, including housing, groceries, airline fares and new vehicles, and annual inflation remains at its highest rate since early 1982.
- Groceries more expensive -
CPI rose just 0.3 percent compared to March, after the 1.2 percent surge in the prior month, but excluding volatile food and energy goods, the "core" index last month increased at double the March rate, the report said.
A large driver was food at home, which jumped 10.8 percent over the last 12 months -- the largest annual increase since November 1980, according to the report.
The index for meat, poultry, fish and eggs surged 14.3 percent in the biggest gain since May 1979.
Americans saw big increases in the month for dairy and cereal products, even as fruit and vegetable costs fell last month.
Even with the decline in gasoline, energy costs have surged 30.3 percent over the past 12 months, with gasoline up 43.6 percent compared to a year ago.
Economists expect inflation to continue to slow gradually, but see no sign the Federal Reserve will ease up on what it said will be rapid interest rate increases to try to tamp down the price pressures and cool demand.
The Fed last week announced its largest rate hike since 2000, and signaled similar increases were likely in coming months.
Despite the "modest reprieve" in the data suggesting inflation peaked in March, "the renewed rise in gasoline prices towards a record $4.50 nationally and increase in diesel prices signals that there is still upward risk to the inflation outlook," Kathy Bostjancic of Oxford Economics said in an analysis.
"Further, the Covid-related China lockdowns and the continued Russia-Ukraine war places further stress on already strained supply chains."
S.Pimentel--PC