PANews, Oct. 14 — Economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal expect overall U.S. CPI to rise 0.6% month over month and 3.6% year over year in September. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core CPI is expected to rise 0.2% month over month and 2.5% year over year. This increase is not “huge,” but it is enough to keep inflationary pressures persistent and continue to pressure the Federal Reserve, forcing it to respond.

Tony Rodriguez, head of fixed-income strategy at Nuveen, said headline inflation will clearly rise, driven mainly by higher energy prices. “So far, we haven’t seen this pressure feed through to core inflation. But what’s concerning is that if this situation persists for another two quarters, inflationary pressures will begin to spread to food, goods, and other areas.”