The daily business briefing: August 12, 2021

U.S. inflation slows, Rand Paul belatedly discloses wife's COVID-19 drugmaker stock, and more

Rand Paul
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1. U.S. inflation rises at slower pace

Inflation slowed in July, the Labor Department reported Wednesday, giving economists more confidence that this year's sharp rise is temporary, sparked largely by booming car prices. The consumer price index rose 0.5 percent in July, or 5.4 percent from a year earlier, but core CPI — which strips out volatile food and energy prices — rose just 0.3 percent, below expectations. The Federal Reserve has maintained that the high inflation rate is "largely transitory," but some Fed officials are urging the central bank to announce next month a curtailing of bond buying in the fall. "The July inflation report appears to give a little something to both the hawks and the doves within the Fed," says Jim Baird, chief investment officer for Plante Moran Financial Advisors.

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