- 'Sci-fi assassin': S. Korean Olympic sharpshooter wins internet
- 'No hope' as anguished families wait for India landslide bodies
- Delight to disgust as Olympic champ has table tennis bat broken
- France win women's triathlon and home hero Marchand targets more golds
- France's Beaugrand wins Olympic gold after triathlon finally goes ahead
- 'It's a thunderbolt,' say Palestinians of Hamas chief's killing
- World Bank approves $1.5 billion Ethiopia rescue package
- Tanzania evicting tens of thousands of Maasai: HRW
- Trump sharpens his weapons against new rival Kamala Harris
- Hamburg transforms its huge 'ugly wart' Nazi bunker
- Olympic triathlons go ahead and home hero Marchand targets two more golds
- Women triathletes dive into River Seine at Paris Olympics
- Australia launches landmark peanut allergy treatment for babies
- India landslide toll hits 126 as rain hampers rescue work
- HSBC records $21.6 billion pre-tax profit in first half 2024
- Yen rises after Japan hikes interest rates, eyes turn to Fed
- Bank of Japan raises key interest rate for second time in 17 years
- North-South Korea Olympic podium selfie goes viral
- Sedjati gunning for Rudisha's world record at Olympics
- Hamas says leader killed in Israel strike in Iran
- Unfinished business: Indonesia's new capital has long way to go
- Greece tries to tempt its emigrants back home
- US Fed expected to pause again and hint at September rate cut
- Flick opens his Barcelona tenure with win over Man City
- Yen rises ahead of Bank of Japan decision as rate hike talk swirls
- Bot-like accounts on X fuel US political conspiracies, watchdog says
- Home hero Marchand targets more Olympic gold amid triathlon suspense
- Paulino dodges rain, aiming for Olympic 400m glory
- McIlroy eyeing 'probably biggest' win in 10 years at Olympics
- World champion Springboks seek to improve dismal Brisbane record
- Azarenka happy with shoulder injury recovery in Washington win
- 'Say it to my face,' Harris dares Trump as White House battle deepens
- From DC's 'forgotten' river to the Seine, pollution cancels swim events
- Australian airline Rex enters administration as finances sag
- One year on 'Mars': Inside NASA's ultra-realistic isolation study
- Samsung Electronics says Q2 operating profits soar to $7.5 billion
- 'We are not afraid': Venezuelan opposition puts up peaceful resistance
- Starbucks profits fall again but CEO says turnaround underway
- Pig's head threat sees Di Maria abandon return to Argentina
- Biles 'queen' but Italy, Brazil make history with team medals
- France striker Mateta stokes Argentina rivalry ahead of Olympic showdown
- Nadal keeps Olympic flame burning, Murray back from the brink
- Harris says Israel has 'right to defend itself' against Hezbollah
- Outrage, pro-Hezbollah chants as Israel hits group stronghold
- Tearful Wiffen makes Irish history with Olympic gold
- McKeown delivers more Aussie gold as Ireland's Wiffen makes history
- Late-night 'pow-wow' cleared path to Olympic gold for Biles and US
- Microsoft cloud unit miss dulls bright earnings
- Nadal having 'fun' in Olympic dream team with Alcaraz
- Solar storms could cause more auroras
US consumer inflation eases more than expected
US inflation cooled more than expected in June, government data showed Thursday, a positive development for President Joe Biden as he fights to win confidence on his economic record in his reelection bid.
The consumer price index (CPI) rose 3.0 percent last month from a year ago, said the Labor Department, as a drop in gas prices more than offset housing costs.
A measure stripping out volatile food and energy prices also saw the smallest annual rise since 2021.
"Today's report shows that we are making significant progress fighting inflation," Biden said in a statement.
While costs of cars and appliances are falling, he conceded that prices remain too high and pledged to "do everything I can for the working people that built our economy."
A consensus forecast of analysts initially expected consumer inflation at 3.1 percent, down from 3.3 percent in May.
The world's biggest economy has been on a bumpy path to reining in inflation, which soared to a blistering 9.1 percent in mid-2022.
This prompted the central bank to rapidly hike interest rates in hopes of easing demand and bringing down price increases.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers this week that there has since been "modest" progress.
In June, overall CPI declined 0.1 percent on-month for the first time since 2020, Labor Department data showed.
The "core" CPI index excluding the volatile food and energy was up 3.3 percent on-year, the smallest jump since April 2021.
- Consumer boost -
"The improvement on the inflation front recently is good news for growth in real disposable income, which matters for consumer spending," said Ryan Sweet, chief US economist at Oxford Economics.
He noted that spending "hit a lull" in the first half of the year.
The latest report adds to a series of encouraging data that could give officials confidence that inflation is coming down to their two-percent target.
This, in turn, would allow them to start cutting decades-high interest rates.
The jobs market, another segment that Fed policymakers are monitoring, has also returned to a "strong, but not overheated" state, Powell said this week.
- Rate cut possibility -
A further deceleration in prices and labor market cooldown would "support a change in message from the Fed" at its July policy meeting, said Rubeela Farooqi, chief US economist at High Frequency Economics.
This could open the door to rate cuts as soon as the September meeting, she said.
But Dan North, senior economist at Allianz Trade North America, said: "We still have a ways to go yet."
While shelter inflation has noticeably eased, he maintained that housing has been a major factor behind the stickiness of figures.
"I don't see relief in the housing market for some period of time after the Fed starts to cut rates," he warned.
"Even if the Fed starts cutting in September, it's going to be months and months before we see enough significant movement in the 30-year mortgage to make a difference," he told AFP.
E.Ramalho--PC