The Federal Reserve kept its key rate unchanged Wednesday yet half the central bank’s policymakers said they could support a rate hike later this year.
Consumer prices rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier, up from 3.8% in April and the third straight increase.
The average rate remains below 6.85%, where it was a year ago.
U.S. consumer prices climbed a sharply again last month as the 10-week war with Iran pushed energy prices higher.
The Federal Reserve is leaving its benchmark interest rate unchanged for the third straight meeting.
Wholesale prices can offer an early look at where consumer inflation might be headed.
Despite the pullback in sales, home prices continued to rise last month.
Oil prices shot up again because of the war with Iran, tightening their grip on the global economy and sending stock markets sharply lower.
The U.S. housing market has been in a slump dating back to 2022, when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows.
The S&P 500 dropped 1.6% after a report showed U.S. employers cut more jobs last month than they created.