Good morning, you're listening to Markets Desk.
Consumer prices fell outright in June for the first time since the pandemic, with the annual rate coming in at three point five percent, well below the three point eight percent economists had forecast. A sharp drop in gasoline prices, tied to the Iran ceasefire, drove the relief — though analysts warn renewed conflict could reverse those gains quickly.
Keeping a close eye on that data is incoming Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, who used a public address Tuesday to promise inflation will become, in his words, a thing of the past. Warsh pledged to get monetary policy right and pointed to the artificial intelligence investment boom as a structural force that could help bring prices durably lower over time.
Meanwhile, a sharp reversal for IBM, whose shares are set to open down nearly twenty three percent after the company reported worse-than-expected second quarter results. CEO Arvind Krishna acknowledged the company faltered, with clients pulling back spending on IBM's artificial intelligence products — a cautionary signal for enterprise tech at a moment when AI enthusiasm has driven valuations sharply higher across the sector.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
