Current Economic Data Sends Mixed Signals

From cmegroup.com Watch this video at https://www.cryptocraft.com/news/1163167-current-economic-data-sends-mixed-signals.

The pandemic disrupted the typical economic patterns, so interpreting data at this stage is exceptionally confusing. Here are a few observations to help one sort through the mixed signals. Headline year-over-year inflation makes the news, but one needs to carefully monitor month-over-month data, as year-over-year data is influenced as much by what happened one year ago as it is by what is happening today. For inflation to recede to 3%, it means the month-over-month change in CPI needs to slow to an average of 0.25% per month. During the height of the pandemic, consumers bought more goods than before because access to certain services was constrained, which exacerbated the problem with supply chains. A return to pre-pandemic patterns is happening quite slowly, and goods inflation is still outpacing service inflation.