In some good news for Vice President Kamala Harris and the economy, annual inflation fell to 2.9% in July — now marking four months of disinflation.
The one-tenth of a percentage point decline in the consumer price index comes as most economists expected that annual inflation would remain at 3%, the same as the month before.
Notably, inflation is now the lowest it has been since March 2021, shortly after President Joe Biden was sworn in.
On a month-to-month basis, inflation rose 0.2%.
Inflation is the biggest concern facing voters, so the White House and Harris campaign are undoubtedly breathing a sigh of relief that there wasn’t an unexpected uptick. Republicans have worked hard to tie Harris to the economy.
The Federal Reserve, which has raised interest rates to their highest level since the turn of the century, will also be pleased to see inflation continuing its descent back to earth. Continued declines may allow the Fed to cut, which would be good news for consumers and the labor market.
The elephant in the room recently has been the lackluster July employment report.
The economy added 114,000 jobs in July, far fewer than expected, and the unemployment rate rose two-tenths of a percentage point to 4.3%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. That was a pretty