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US inflation falls to 8.5% in July
![US inflation falls to 8.5% in July]()
Gas prices drop sharply after a hitting a national average of $5 a gallon in mid-June US inflation falls to 8.5% in July
Falling gas prices gave Americans a slight break from the pain of high inflation last month, though the surge in overall prices slowed only modestly from the four-decade high it reached in June.
Prices fell in the US in July as gas prices eased bringing down the annual rate of inflation to 8.5%, still close to a multi-decade high but lower than the four-decade peak it hit in June.
July’s figure, while still high, represents a significant fall from the annual rate of 9.1% recorded in June and will raise hopes that inflation has finally peaked in the US. It follows other indicators that have suggested price rises are finally moderating.
But the report showed once again how broadly inflation has spread through the economy. After stripping out food and energy costs – which are highly volatile – prices climbed by 5.9% in the year to the end of July, matching last month’s reading.
