Inflation shows signs of easing

The Department of Labor on Wednesday reported that wholesale prices, also called producer prices, had dropped by 0.3 percent in May compared to April. May’s producer prices were up 1.1 percent compared to 12 months before—a relatively small year-over-year increase. On Tuesday, the department reported that the growth of consumer prices was slowing.

What does the Fed say? The Federal Reserve on Wednesday afternoon announced that it was pausing its campaign of raising its key interest rates. In an effort to tame inflation, the Fed raised interest rates 10 times in the last 15 months, hiking its rates roughly 5 percent since March 2022. The Fed could approve another increase in July.

Dig deeper: Listen to Nick Eicher’s discussion with David Bahnsen on The World and Everything in It podcast about the basics of economic growth.