2025-12-19
12 分钟Good morning from the Financial Times.
Today is Friday, December 19th, and this is your FT News Briefing.
Yesterday's U.S.
inflation report is being questioned by economists.
Plus, we asked you how your spending has changed this holiday season.
You answered, our consumer editor, Claire Barrett, gives her thoughts.
I'm Mark Filippino, and here's the news you need to start your day.
Inflation in the US unexpectedly dipped to 2.7% in November.
The report that came out yesterday showed a number well below the 3.1% figure economists predicted.
And economists, well, they think something's up with the report.
Namely that the government shut down that ran from October 1st until November 12th skewed the numbers.
A senior economist at JP Morgan said the lower figures suggest that
because the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated many of the numbers due to the shutdown,
they may not be an accurate reflection of real-world prices,
and there's a strong chance they'll have to be revised.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics noted, quote, for a few indexes,
BLS uses non-survey data sources instead of survey data to make the index calculations.
The holiday season is the most wonderful time of the year, but it's also the most expensive.
Between gifts, food, and travel, people can end up spending a lot of money.
This year, economic conditions are tough for lots of folks.