White House warns inflation data won't be released after report shows costs rising
This month's inflation report arrived 10 days late due to the government shutdown showing the Consumer Price Index rose slightly, but next month the data may not be released at all.
The CPI rose 3 percent in September compared to the same time last year, the fastest annual pace all year, but a White House official said the report may not be released next month if the government doesn't reopen soon, according to Fox Business correspondent Edward Lawrence.
"White House Official tells me the October CPI Inflation report will likely not come out for first time in history because the government shutdown," Lawrence reported. "The September report was worked on only because by law COLA increases must be posted by Nov 1st based on the latest inflation report."
The shutdown has entered its fourth week with little sign that Congress will be able to agree on a funding measure by the end of this month, and the lapse has already forced the Bureau of Labor Statistics to suspend all operations, including the release of its monthly jobs report and all future data collection.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed October’s inflation report would likely not be released due to the shutdown, “which will leave businesses, markets, families and the Federal Reserve in disarray.”
Fed officials refer to official government statistics as the “gold standard” for economic data, saying that alternative sources for data on jobs, inflation and other economic indicators are not as consistent or comprehensive.