Inflation at the wholesale level edges up slightly

Inflation at the wholesale level edges up slightly

A day after Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen boosted markets with her worries about slow inflation, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released numbers on inflation at the producer level–otherwise known as wholesale inflation–that showed inflation is weak but not totally absent. The Producer Price Index rose at a 2% annual rate in June.

Worry about central banks gains weight

Worry about central banks gains weight

Today it’s JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon telling a conference that the unwinding of central bank bond-buying programs is an unprecedented challenge that may be more disruptive than people think. Tomorrow it’s Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen giving Congress some clue (maybe) on when the Fed will begin to reduce its $4.5 trillion portfolio of Treasury and mortgage-backed debt instruments.