5-Chart Friday (7/16/21)

By By Charlie Bilello of COMPOUND

5 charts from the past week that tell an interesting story in markets and investing…

1) 5% Inflation

Inflation in the US continues to march higher, hitting 5% overall for the first time since 2008. Core CPI (which excludes food/energy) rose to 4.5%, its highest level since 1991.

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Leading the move higher were price increases in used cars/trucks and gasoline, both up over 45% in the last year.

Source: BLS

Gas prices rose to $3.23 per gallon this week, their highest level since 2014.

The combination of higher inflation and the Fed maintaining 0% policy has pushed the real Fed Funds Rate down to -5.4%, the lowest real central bank rate in the world.

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