Oil Is Below $70, but the Federal Reserve's June Inflation Forecast Has an Unpleasant Surprise in Store for Wall Street

5 hours ago 1

Sean Williams, The Motley Fool

Tue, June 30, 2026 astatine 3:26 AM CDT 5 min read

Roughly 4 weeks ago, the iconic Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI), broad-based S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), and innovation-powered Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) each exploded to caller highs. However, this rally doesn't archer the implicit communicative connected Wall Street astatine the moment.

Aside from the artificial quality (AI) infrastructure build-out, nary taxable is garnering much attraction than inflation. Although crude lipid prices person travel down successful a large mode implicit the past six weeks, the Federal Reserve's latest June ostentation update has an unpleasant astonishment successful store for Wall Street.

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A New York Stock Exchange level  trader looking up   successful  bewilderment astatine  a machine  monitor.

Image source: Getty Images.

A historical vigor proviso disruption has lifted U.S. ostentation to a three-year precocious

While President Donald Trump's tariffs are inactive providing humble upward unit connected prime goods, the bulk of the inflationary unit felt by consumers and businesses this twelvemonth has travel from the Trump-led Iran war.

Four months ago, Trump gave the U.S. subject the greenish airy to onslaught Iran. The second responded by efficaciously shutting down the Strait of Hormuz to commercialized vessels, thereby halting the regular travel of astir 20 cardinal barrels of petroleum liquids. This represents the largest vigor proviso disruption successful modern history.

The consequent absorption successful vigor markets was violent. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lipid surged from $67/barrel to much than $112/barrel successful nether six weeks. In turn, state prices roseate astatine the fastest gait successful much than 3 decades.

In February, U.S. trailing 12-month (TTM) ostentation clocked successful astatine conscionable 2.4%. By May, soaring vigor prices pushed TTM ostentation to 4.2%, the highest level since April 2023.

Kevin Warsh speaking with reporters aft  the June 2026 Federal Open Market Committee meeting.

Fed Chair Kevin Warsh delivering remarks. Image source: Official Federal Reserve Photo.

WTI crude is beneath $70, but Core PCE continues to ascent

The metallic lining for consumers is that crude lipid prices person tumbled successful caller weeks. The archetypal adjacent beneath $70/barrel for WTI crude since the commencement of the Iran warfare has Wall Street and investors excited astir the imaginable of little inflation.

According to the June 26 update from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland's Inflation Nowcasting tool, the Consumer Price Index is expected to retrace somewhat to 3.96% (over the TTM) successful June. But this doesn't mean ostentation is yesterday's quality oregon that the Fed tin instrumentality involvement rate-hike speech disconnected the table.

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