US import prices recorded the biggest drop in nine months in September, falling energy and food prices eased inflationary pressure

The Zhitong Finance App noticed that US import prices recorded the biggest drop in nine months in September. Due to falling prices of energy products and food, this bodes well for the domestic inflation outlook. According to data released on Wednesday, import prices in September fell 0.4% from the previous month, the biggest drop since December 2023, and the revised decline in August was 0.2%.

Economists surveyed by Reuters had predicted that import prices without tariffs would fall by 0.4%, compared to a 0.3% drop previously reported. In the 12 months to September, import prices fell 0.1% after rising 0.8% in August.

According to data released last week, the consumer price index rebounded slightly in September. While producer prices remained unchanged last month, some components showed strength, which is expected to translate into monthly data for key inflation indicators tracked by the Federal Reserve to meet the 2% target.

The Federal Reserve may cut interest rates again next month, but in the context of economic recovery, interest rate cuts are expected to be small, only 25 basis points.

Due to growing concerns about the labor market, the Federal Reserve cut the policy interest rate by half a percentage point to the 4.75%-5.00% range in September, thus starting its easing cycle. It raised interest rates by 525 basis points in 2022 and 2023 to cope with surging inflation.