US Annual Inflation Surges Amid US-Israeli Aggression on Iran

Washington: The inflation rate in the United States accelerated in March, driven by rising gasoline prices resulting from the US-Israeli aggression against Iran. This strengthened financial market expectations that the Federal Reserve (the US central bank) may keep interest rates unchanged until later next year. According to Yemen News Agency, the Bureau of Economic Analysis at the US Department of Commerce reported on Thursday that the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index rose 0.7 percent last month. This marked the largest increase since June 2022, following an unrevised 0.4 percent rise in February. The increase was in line with economists' expectations. PCE inflation jumped 3.5 percent in the 12 months ending in March, marking the largest increase since May 2023, after rising 2.8 percent in February. This data was included in the preliminary report on US GDP for the first quarter. On February 28th, the United States and Israel launched a new aggression against Iran that lasted 40 days, r esulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians and targeting schools, hospitals, mosques, and other infrastructure belonging to the Iranian people. In response to this aggression, Iran launched Operation True Promise 4 against Israel and US bases in the region.