Core Inflation by Country

What is Core Inflation?

Core inflation strips the most volatile components — typically food and energy — from the headline CPI index to reveal the underlying trend. Different jurisdictions use slightly different core definitions (US Core PCE, eurozone HICP ex-energy and unprocessed food, RBA trimmed-mean, etc.) but the goal is the same: filter out noise.

Why it matters for FX

Central banks set policy off core, not headline, because energy and food prices reverse on their own and don't reflect persistent domestic price pressure. For FX, sticky core inflation is the single biggest reason a central bank holds rates higher for longer, which sustains the rate differential and supports the currency. Core that converges back to target faster than expected typically opens the door to cuts and weighs on the currency.

How to read this page

Compare each currency's core print to its central bank's target (usually 2 percent). The gap and the direction of travel matter more than the absolute level. Cross-reference against the policy rate page to see who is comfortable cutting and who is stuck.

What to watch for

• Sticky services / supercore inflation despite goods disinflation
• Three-month annualised core (a faster-moving signal)
• Median CPI and trimmed-mean variants from the RBA and BoC
• Wage growth feeding into services prices
• Rent / shelter components, which lag the housing cycle