Rubbish Check
Fox Business · 11 September 2026
source“Consumer prices remained elevated in August ahead of Fed’s next meeting”
R2/ 10
Lightly altered
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates Fox Business's headline that consumer prices "remained elevated" in August 2026 a 2/10 because the BLS reading of 3.4% annual CPI matched both economist forecasts and July's rate, making "elevated" an accurate, unspun description rather than an alarmist one.
The Verdict
Lightly altered. The headline sticks to the plain fact that inflation stayed above the Fed's target with no acceleration, and the body backs it up with the exact BLS figures and both bullish and bearish expert reads. The only soft spot is that "elevated" does double duty for a report that was actually in line with, not worse than, expectations on the headline number.
What actually happened
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported August CPI rose 0.4% on the month and 3.4% year-over-year, both matching consensus estimates from economists polled by LSEG. Core CPI (excluding food and energy) rose 0.3% monthly, slightly above the 0.2% forecast, while its annual rate ticked down to 2.4% from July's 2.5%. The data landed a week before the Fed's next rate decision, with markets pricing in higher odds of a hike.
Key facts
- Headline CPI: +0.4% m/m, +3.4% y/y, both in line with LSEG estimates; annual rate unchanged from July.
- Core CPI: +0.3% m/m (hotter than the 0.2% forecast); +2.4% y/y, cooler than July's 2.5%.
- Gasoline prices +3.9% m/m, +27.4% y/y; BLS said gasoline accounted for more than a third of the headline CPI increase.
- CME FedWatch showed odds of a September 25bp hike jumped to 85.6%, up from 72.4% a day earlier and 59.4% a week prior.
- S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq all rose roughly 0.9-1% the same morning, a market reaction inconsistent with a "hot inflation shock" narrative.
What to watch for
Watch whether next month's core annual figure keeps cooling toward the Fed's target or whether the monthly core uptick (0.3% vs. 0.2% expected) proves sticky. Also watch for revisions to the energy component given one analyst's note that the survey period predated a jump in Brent crude above $100.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
