Inflation Surges, Fed Caught in Bind

0:00It's April 10th, you're listening to Sydney News today, AI-powered local news. I'm Cory with the story. US inflation just hit a rough patch in March, jumping 0.9% from last month and 3.3% over the past year. That's the biggest monthly spike in almost two years, straight tied to the US Israel War, with Iran blocking the straight-of-form moves choking off a fifth. Of the world's oil flow, energy prices led the charge, surging 10.9% with gasoline alone of 21.2% and driving most of that increase. Airfare's Climb 2, 2.7% in the month, and 14.9% from last year. Core inflation, stripping out food and energy, eased in at 0.2% monthly, and 2.6% yearly. The war's shaking things are bad, piling on top of last year's tears from Trump that already had folks on edge. Inflation adept to a 4-year low of 2.3% last April, Climb back to 3% by September, then

1:01cool to 2.4% early this year, until now. Even with a 2-week ceasefire reopening the straight, oil's still 10% higher than pre-war and 30% of since January. GDP for late last quarter got slashed from 1.4% to just 0.5%, producer prices jumped the most in 13 years, but jobs held strong with 178,000 added an unemployment at 4.3%. That mix of hot prices and solid jobs has the Fed in a bind, rates sitting at 3.5% to 3.75% after hikes from near. Zero, though wayrate moves carefully as the conflict drags on, keeping the economy on a tightrope.