(New York) The New York Stock Exchange was trading sharply higher on Wednesday, celebrating the slowdown in inflation in the United States published just before the end of a monetary meeting of the American central bank (Fed).

The Dow Jones Index gained 0.72%. The NASDAQ and the S

Inflation slowed more than expected in May in the United States, to 3.3% year-on-year compared to 3.4% in April, a relief after the rebound at the start of the year, according to the CPI index of consumer prices published Wednesday by the Department of Labor.

Over one month, prices remained identical to those of April, the evolution of the index being 0%, compared to 0.3% the previous month.

This is better than expected by analysts, who expected 0.1% month-on-month and 3.4% year-over-year, according to the MarketWatch consensus.

“Finally, some positive surprises since headline inflation and core inflation are better than expected,” said Robert Frick of Navy Federal Credit Union.

“There has been some relief at the pump, but unfortunately the costs of houses and apartments continue to rise and remain the main cause of inflation,” he stressed.

For Rubeela Farooqi, chief economist for High Frequency Economics, this data will however have “no impact” on the outcome of the meeting of the Fed’s monetary committee on Wednesday.  

Fed rates are expected to remain unchanged at their highest level in more than two decades, as it says Fed members “need to see more than a month of slowing,” showing a sustainable path toward he 2% inflation target.

Nevertheless, markets are now 70% expecting a Fed rate cut as early as September compared to 52% on Tuesday, according to calculations on CME Group futures products.

In the bond market, yields were sliding rapidly, with the two-year yield, the most sensitive to changes in the Fed’s overnight rates, falling to 4.68% from 4.83%.

Ten-year rates fell to 4.28% from 4.40% on Tuesday.

The dollar, which had strengthened significantly with the fall of the euro at the start of the week after the European elections, gave up almost all the ground it had acquired, with the prospect of a rate cut this year increasing.

The dollar was down 0.85% against the euro at $1.0832 per euro around 9:45 a.m. ET.

Investors will follow Fed President Jerome Powell’s midday press conference and the publication of new forecasts for inflation, unemployment, growth and changes in the institution’s rates.

In terms of the rating, Apple continued to be sought after (1.92%) after its crazy surge the day before (7.26%) caused by the integration of generative artificial intelligence in its devices, from the iPhone to the Mac.

DIY and home improvement store chains Home Depot (4.15%) and Lowe’s (2.68%) jumped, as investors bet on future consumer enthusiasm.

Entertainment group Paramount Global, which owns the American channels CBS and MTV, fell 0.82% as Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone through National Amusements, halted merger negotiations with Skydance Media.

The parties “were unable to find a mutually acceptable agreement,” National Amusement said in a statement sent to AFP.

On Tuesday, the NASDAQ gained 0.88% to 17,343.55 points, marking its 15th record since the start of the year. THE