Summary: US core PCE price index up 0.3% in March, in line with expectations; annual rate unchanged at 2.8%; Treasury yields rise; Fed rate-cut expectations soften.
One of the US Fed’s favoured measures of inflation is the change in the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index. After hitting the Fed’s target at the time of 2.0% in mid-2018, the annual rate then hovered in a range between 1.8% and 2.0% before it eased back to a range between 1.5% and 1.8% through 2019. It then plummeted below 1.0% in April 2020 before rising back to around 1.5% in the September quarter of that year. It has since increased significantly and still remains above the Fed’s target even after recent declines.
The latest figures have now been published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis as part of the March personal income and expenditures report. Core PCE prices rose by 0.3% over the month, in line with expectations as well as February’s 0.3% increase. On a 12-month basis, the core PCE inflation rate remained steady at 2.8%.
US Treasury bond yields generally rose on the day. By the close of business, 2-year and 10-year Treasury bond yields had both gained 6bps to 4.99% and 4.70% respectively while the 30-year yield finished 4bps higher at 4.81%.
In terms of US Fed policy, expectations of a lower federal funds rate in the next 12 months softened, although at least two 25bps cuts are still currently factored in. At the close of business, contracts implied the effective federal funds rate would average 5.32% in May, just below the current spot rate, 5.31% in June and 5.30% in July. However, April 2025 contracts implied 4.83%, 50bps less than the current rate.
The core version of PCE strips out energy and food components, which are volatile from month to month, in an attempt to identify the prevailing trend. It is not the only measure of inflation used by the Fed; the Fed also tracks the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Producer Price Index (PPI) from the Department of Labor. However, it is the one measure which is most often referred to in FOMC minutes.