Below is a summary of my post-CPI tweets. 

  • 10y Breakevens unch to +0.5bp. They’re at 6 month highs of 1.92%, but amazing they can’t get to 2%.
  • On CPI: Last month there was an upside surprise with a strong 0.2%, making it 2 of the last 3 months with upside surprises.
  • The comparisons to year ago are about to get more difficult though. Today we drop off a 0.18% from last November.
  • We drop off a 0.22%, 0.31%, 0.21% next three months after that.
  • This month we’re again watching New & Used Cars and Trucks, which have not yet shown any response to survey evidence of increases.
  • Also an eye on Primary Rents, which have been declining although the Shiller Home Price Index is reaching new local highs.
  • Last mo, median CPI scored its largest m/m incr since July ’08. So in short – we’re in an inflation upswing; just need to see how much.
  • Consensus for today’s number is 0.2% on core – almost exactly, keeping y/y at 1.8%.
  • Well, core is 0.1%…but waiting for Bloomberg to drop the actual figures. Looks like a big miss, not a little miss.
  • yeah, 0.12%, pushing y/y down to 1.71%. Last 4 months have seen two high misses and two low misses.
  • Core goods rose to -0.9% y/y from -1.0%, but core services down to 2.5% from 2.7%. SO IT ISN’T THE INTERNET, FOLKS.
  • 10y breaks plunging 4bps since pre-data, on the way to creating another buying opportunity.
  • Only way 1.89% 10y BEI make sense is if inflation is permanently broken. But median CPI is 2.3% y/y. So it’s not broken!
  • (We have TIPS about 53bps cheap at current nominal yields).
  • In major subgroups, Apparel decelerated, Recreation decelerated, Other decelerated. Medical unch. Everything else up. Interesting.
  • In Housing, Primary Rents decelerated slightly again 2.68% from 2.70%, but seem to be converging on our model.
  • OER 3.12% vs 3.20%…there’s your problem…and Lodging Away from Home plunged to 0.60% from 1.36% y/y. But the latter is a small weight.
  • New vehicles -1.08% vs -1.38%; used cars to -2.10% from -2.89%. Not really the bump we are due.