Inflation is cooling, but more evidence is needed for rate cuts WSOC TV [Video]

WASHINGTON — (AP) — Federal Reserve officials at their most recent meeting welcomed signs that inflation is slowing and highlighted data suggesting that the job market and the broader economy could be cooling.

Both trends, if they continued, will likely lead the Fed to cut its benchmark interest rate in the coming months from its 23-year peak of 5.3%.

The minutes of the Fed’s June 11-12 meeting, released Wednesday, showed that the policymakers saw several factors that could further ease inflation in the coming months. These factors included the slower growth of wages, which reduces pressure on companies to raise prices to cover their labor costs.

The policymakers also pointed to several cases of retail chains and other businesses lowering prices and offering discounts, a sign that customers are increasingly resisting higher prices.

Yet the officials also said more evidence was needed to demonstrate that inflation was returning sustainably to the Fed’s 2% target. They signaled that they were in no rush to …