Mortgage rates have experienced fluctuations over the last few months, with a general upward trend in recent weeks. As of January 15, 2025, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage stands at 7.01%, reflecting a slight increase from earlier this year — and from the rates we saw in late 2024.

Entering 2025, models from forecasting companies like Trading Economics anticipate inflation rates between 2.4% and 2.9% between the end of 2024 and the start of 2026. Unfortunately, actually predicting inflation can be difficult, as rates can be affected by a variety of factors, including political climates and supply-chain interruptions.

Fresh inflation data released Wednesday is likely to keep the Federal Reserve on pause during its next policy meeting this month, even though a new reading did show some signs of easing.

The central bank’s recent infusion of financial-market brawn includes Beth Hammack, who worked for three decades at Goldman Sachs.

U.S. inflation likely worsened last month on the back of higher prices for gas, eggs, and used cars, a trend that could make it less likely that the Federal Reserve will cut its key interest rate much this year.

Consumer Price Index showed an acceleration to 2.9%, the highest rate since July. With such high inflation, the Fed is unlikely to cut rates in January.

The Consumer Price Index rose 2.9 percent from a year earlier, but a measure of underlying inflation was more encouraging.

US stocks surged higher Wednesday after an encouraging inflation report and blockbuster profits for some of America’s biggest banks.

The latest inflation report slashed the risk that the Fed could go back to hiking interest rates this year, Wall Street strategists say.

Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said on Friday that high interest rates are poised to have a much stronger effect on inflation than many expect, dismissing fears that fiscal challenges could undermine the effectiveness of monetary policy.

The consumer price index increased by 2.9 percent in December from a year earlier, the Labor Department reported Wednesday, in line with economists’ expectations and hotter than a 2.7 percent rise in November. It was also above a 2.6 percent annual increase in October.