Inflation Focus

Experts at the Kansas City Fed have developed a collection of research and resources exploring inflation and its impact on consumers, industries and economies.

In economics, inflation occurs when prices increase rapidly, resulting in a decline of purchasing power.

Keeping prices stable is a primary mission of the Federal Reserve. One way the Kansas City Fed monitors inflation trends is through the work of experts and economists. Below, you’ll find an archive of the Bank’s latest research and resources related to inflation.

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57 result(s) found


Article Title	Author(s)	Date	Type
A Break in the Link Between Gasoline Prices and Inflation Expectations Gasoline prices and consumers’ inflation expectations often move in similar directions. Indeed, the correlation between the two increased noticeably over the last several decades. In 2025, however, that relationship changed dramatically: Gasoline prices declined, while inflation expectations increased with the prospects of higher prices coming from tariffs. If the historical relationship had persisted, inflation expectations might have been 1.5 percentage points lower throughout 2025. Natural Resources and Environment Economic Bulletin Inflation	Jason P. Brown Expandable Row	February 20, 2026 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
Inflation Persistence as an Outcome of Monetary Policy Delayed or tepid monetary policy responses can prolong the inflationary effect of temporary economic shocks. When financial markets expect that policymakers are hesitant to raise interest rates in response to an inflationary shock, the shock may have a longer-lasting effect. Research shows that perceptions of a weak policy response can explain the persistent rise and slow decline in inflation during 2021–22, suggesting policymakers may need to consider inflation persistence as an outcome of monetary policy. Monetary Policy Economic Bulletin Inflation	Taeyoung Doh Stephen D. Vasiljevic Expandable Row	February 6, 2026 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
EconQuest: Where Learning Meets Real-World Economics How Do Food Prices Help Measure Inflation? Consumer Price Index Economics Inflation Research Food Prices Services Inflation	Expandable Row	January 27, 2026 Expandable Row	Web Page Expandable Row
The Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy Kansas City Fed President and CEO Jeff Schmid delivered these remarks to the Economic Club of Kansas City. Jeff Schmid Speeches Economic Update Monetary Policy Federal Reserve System Inflation	Expandable Row	January 15, 2026 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
Is It Time to Add Food-at-Home Inflation to Measures of Core Inflation? Since the mid-1970s, the Federal Reserve has used core inflation to examine trends in underlying inflation. Core inflation is considered a more stable measure as it excludes energy and food, historically viewed as the most volatile components of inflation. However, core inflation can be a challenge for central bankers to communicate, as food inflation is highly salient to consumers. We argue that food-at-home inflation has become less volatile over time and could be added to measures of core inflation with few drawbacks. Monetary Policy Economic Bulletin Food Prices Agriculture Inflation	Francisco Scott José Mustre-del-Río Amaze Lusompa Jalen Nichols Expandable Row	June 6, 2025 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
Labor Market Cooling Has Been Uneven Across Industries The U.S. labor market has cooled over the last two years but remains healthy overall. However, an industry-specific version of the KC Fed’s Labor Market Conditions Indicators (LMCI) suggests pockets of tightness and weakness have appeared in a few industries. Tightness appears to be limited to less labor-intensive industries, limiting upside risk to inflation. Weakness, on the other hand, has appeared in the interest-rate-sensitive information industry, which may be vulnerable to further labor market cooling. Labor and Demographics Monetary Policy Data and Trends Economic Bulletin Inflation	Karlye Dilts Stedman Emily Pollard Expandable Row	January 31, 2025 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
Maintaining the Anchor: An Evaluation of Inflation Targeting in the Face of COVID-19 Globally, central banks prevented high inflation post-pandemic from becoming embedded in inflation expectations. Covid-19 Research Research Working Paper Monetary Policy Macroeconomics Inflation	Brent Bundick A. Lee Smith Luca Van der Meer Expandable Row	December 20, 2024 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
The Passthrough of Agricultural Commodity Prices to Food Prices Agricultural commodities prices have had a small and uncertain effect on changes in food prices at least since 2008. Research Working Paper Food Prices Agriculture Inflation	Francisco Scott Amaze Lusompa David Rodziewicz Cortney Cowley Jacob Dice Expandable Row	December 20, 2024 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row
Ask an Economist: Housing services prices Jordan Rappaport explains why the pace of the decline in U.S. housing services inflation bears watching. Ask an Economist Ten Magazine Housing Trends Housing Inflation	Expandable Row	November 5, 2024 Expandable Row	Web Page Expandable Row
Cost of Childcare Increasingly Weighs on Labor Force Engagement Problems attaining childcare have weighed on workers’ engagement in the labor force for some time. A few years ago, pandemic disruptions were the primary culprit in the lower consumption of childcare services. Now, the rising cost of childcare may be to blame. As wage growth moderates, higher childcare costs could place added pressure on households and cause some workers to at least partially disengage from the workforce. Labor and Demographics Regional Economic Bulletin Inflation	John McCoy Expandable Row	October 9, 2024 Expandable Row	Web Page Full Text Expandable Row

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Inflation Focus

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Filter Archived Content

A Break in the Link Between Gasoline Prices and Inflation Expectations

Inflation Persistence as an Outcome of Monetary Policy

EconQuest: Where Learning Meets Real-World Economics

The Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy

Is It Time to Add Food-at-Home Inflation to Measures of Core Inflation?

Labor Market Cooling Has Been Uneven Across Industries

Maintaining the Anchor: An Evaluation of Inflation Targeting in the Face of COVID-19

The Passthrough of Agricultural Commodity Prices to Food Prices

Ask an Economist: Housing services prices

Cost of Childcare Increasingly Weighs on Labor Force Engagement