{
  "id": 19428016,
  "title": "Food prices push US inflation above forecasts, increasing pressure on Fed",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/11/food-prices-push-us-inflation-above-forecasts-increasing-pressure-on",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-11-11T01:14:55.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Malay Mail",
    "slug": "malay-mail-malaymail",
    "url": "https://www.malaymail.com/news/money/2026/11/11/food-prices-push-us-inflation-above-forecasts-increasing-pressure-on-fed/242773"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "US inflation figures released on November 11 revealed a slight slowdown in October but still exceeded economist predictions, indicating the need for more Federal Reserve rate increases. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for October climbed 0.4% from September, falling short of the 0.6% rise in the previous month, according to Labor Department statistics. Economists had anticipated a 0.3% increase.\n\nThe improvement from the prior month was largely due to a significant slowdown in energy price hikes from September. However, food prices surged in October, alongside medical care, household furnishings, and other categories. This came after last week's US midterm elections, where voters strongly opposed President Donald Trump's Republican Party, partly due to ongoing inflation concerns.\n\nThe Labor Department struggled to convert the figures into a year-over-year percentage due to a government shutdown in October 2025. Nonetheless, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland estimated the increase at 3.8%, significantly above the Fed's 2% target. Oxford Economics noted that the report \"sets the stage for a December Fed hike,\" emphasizing that while energy prices moderated as expected, \"food inflation drove the forecast miss last month.\"\n\nThe gasoline index rose 1% in October, a stark contrast to the 9.1% spike in September from August, while the food index increased by 0.5%, up from 0% in September. Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM, suggested that the inflation report could justify a \"supersize hike\" at the December Fed meeting, echoing remarks made by Fed Governor Christopher Waller earlier. Brusuelas believed a December rate hike was inevitable, given it was the final CPI report the Fed would observe.\n\nFutures markets now view a December rate hike as almost certain, with 85% of trader bets predicting a 0.25% hike and 15 predicting a 0.5% increase. Fed Governor Waller had previously indicated support for a December rate increase due to persistent inflation, suggesting a 25 basis point hike. However, if October's trends were similar to those in September, Waller argued for a stronger policy move, potentially advocating for a 50 basis point increase to maintain credibility.\n\nDallas Fed President Lorie Logan also backed additional rate hikes, emphasizing the urgency of acting before inflation becomes entrenched in behavior. She estimated that the Fed funds rate must rise by at least 50 basis points to bring inflation back to target. Logan acknowledged energy prices' role but stressed that inflationary trends are broader, citing higher prices in medical and dining-out sectors that are not easily attributed to tariffs, Middle Eastern conflicts, or chip shortages.",
  "summary": "NEW YORK, Nov 11 — US inflation data released yesterday slowed slightly in October but still overshot analyst esti...",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}