CPI Take- Fed Incompetence Continues
- InfraCap Management
- 16 minutes ago
- 2 min read
CPI printed negative as we had predicted, coming in at negative .4% with core coming in flat vs. expectations of .2%. The headline inflation drop was driven by a 9.5% plunge in energy prices. The decline in core services included a drop in shelter to .1% as the deeply flawed imputed shelter component finally started to reflect the decline in market rents.
We estimate that PCE core will print at .1-.2% at the end of the month depending on the financial services component of PPI which is an imputed number disconnected from reality that is up 9.7% year over year. Real time market inflation, CPI-R, is 1.1% Y/Y and we project PCE- R will be 2.5 year over year. The decline in shelter inflation is critical as it is likely to persist as it is purposely delayed 6 months and is further lagged by utilizing renewing rates. After the Strait is reopened and oil drops below $60/barrel, we project that PCE core declines to below 2.5% over the next year as shelter continues to decline and the effect of tariffs roll off.
The current Fed continues its track record of incompetence by continuing to call for rate increases. Rate increases act to slow the interest rate sensitive sectors of the economy. However, the Fed’s tight monetary policy has already caused the interest sensitive sectors of the economy to enter recession with negative Y/Y growth. Higher inflation has been caused by high energy prices and to a lesser extent higher medical insurance cost. Higher interest rates have absolutely no effect on energy prices or medical care costs. In addition, higher inflation expectations are actually deflationary as higher interest rates further slow the economy and businesses and consumers in the US have almost no market power to raise prices based on their expectations. Historically, inflation has been exclusively caused by excessive monetary growth and oil prices. Money supply growth is negative and oil prices have stabilized indicating we are heading into a deflationary period that should result in rate cuts.

