Hopes of Fed pivot fade in face of alarming inflation figures

For a central bank looking for signs that the worst inflation problem in decades is starting to slowly recede, Thursday’s report on US consumer price growth was about as bad as it gets.

While the annual pace was little changed at 8.2 per cent, the index showed another alarming jump on a monthly basis, suggesting underlying inflationary pressures are still accelerating. Stripping out volatile items such as food and energy, the…