The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release February CPI data at 20:30 tonight

Odaily Planet Daily News The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the February Consumer Price Index (CPI) report at 20:30 (Beijing time) tonight. The market expects inflation to ease but still be higher than the Fed's target. According to FactSet consensus forecasts, the CPI is expected to rise 0.3% month-on-month in February, and the year-on-year growth rate will drop from 3.0% in January to 2.9%. If the forecast is accurate, this will be the first time it has fallen below the 3% mark since the beginning of 2023; the core CPI is expected to rise 0.3% month-on-month and 3.2% year-on-year. The Trump administration's tariffs and immigration restrictions have raised new market concerns about the outlook for inflation. Wells Fargo economists said: "The February CPI report may initially reflect the impact of tariffs, but this is just the beginning." The combination of trade frictions and supply chain complexity may weaken the Fed's confidence in the trend of inflation retreat and delay the pace of interest rate cuts expected by the market. (Jinshi)