Key US inflation gauge cools further as rate hikes bite

Washington (AFP) - A key indicator of US inflation cooled in June to the lowest annual rate in over two years, although this remains above the central bank's target, according to government data released Friday. The Federal Reserve's preferred gauge of inflation, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, rose 3.0 percent last month from June 2022, down from a 3.8 percent jump in May, said the Commerce Department. From May to June, the PCE price index ticked up 0.2 percent, a touch above the 0.1 percent rate in the prior month. But spending climbed 0.5 percent between May and Jun...