TECH - Will March Inflation Data Break Tech Rally's Back? Why Wall Street's 'Dean Of Valuation' And Gene Munster Are Worried But Paul Krugman And Other Economists Are Not | Benzinga
The highly anticipated consumer price index (CPI) report for March is due on Wednesday, and the data could cause market fluctuations due to its potential impact on near-term Federal Reserve interest rate decisions.
Inflation Forecast: Economists generally predict a slight slowdown in the month-over-month inflation rate, with consumer prices and the core reading potentially rising by 0.3% in March compared to 0.4% in February.
However, on a year-over-year basis, inflation is expected to pick up slightly, with an average forecast of 3.4% growth compared to 3.2% in February. The core annual rate, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, might show a slight decrease from 3.8% to 3.7%.
Pretty Significant Event: Value investor and New York University Professor Aswath Damodaran said, “I am more worried than I was a couple of months ago..or even six weeks ago.” Although earnings estimates have been going up almost consistently over the past three months, inflation seemed to be much more stubborn than what people had factored in at the start of the year, he said in a CNBC interview.
“So I think tomorrow’s [Wednesday’s] numbers are going to be pretty significant in where the market goes next, and to be quite honest, that’s where inflation goes the rest of the year,” the professor said. “It’s going to drive the market, not what the Fed does, [or] it does not do.”
Damodaran said ...