U.S. consumer prices unexpectedly rose in August and underlying inflation accelerated amid rising costs for rents and healthcare, giving the Federal Reserve ammunition to deliver a third 75 basis points interest rate hike next Wednesday.
The unemployment rate increased to 3.7% in August 2022 even as more Americans returned to work, according to a Friday release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The U.S. economy had far more vacant jobs at the end of July than economists expected, indicating that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate increases have not yet cooled the labor market.
Fears of an impending recession once again escalated Friday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned economic growth will suffer as the central bank works to ease decades-high inflation