After the CPI print, watch the **next wave of inflation and growth signals** to gauge whether today’s surprise is a blip or a trend. Key markers:
- **Producer Price Index (PPI)** – due within 48 h, shows whether producers are still passing through higher costs; a hot PPI would cement the “sticky-inflation” narrative .
- **Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCE)** – the Fed’s preferred gauge later this month; any upward revision could delay rate cuts .
- **Retail Sales & Durable Goods Orders** (mid-month) – if consumers keep spending despite gloomy sentiment, the Fed has room to stay restrictive .
- **Labor data** – next Friday’s non-farm payrolls and unemployment claims will reveal whether tariff-related layoffs are spreading .
- **Fedspeak & minutes** – every official comment will be parsed for a shift in reaction function; markets will move on even subtle language tweaks .
Together, these releases will decide whether today’s CPI spike becomes a policy inflection point or a data-point footnote.
