October 14 International Forex News

US September CPI to Set 2027 Social Security Adjustment, Possibly Largest in Three Years

October 14 — The US September CPI report due tonight will determine the size of the 2027 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to US Social Security benefits. Under the Social Security Administration's rules, the annual COLA depends on the year-on-year increase in the average of the third-quarter (July–September) Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) versus the same period a year earlier. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show the CPI-W index was 327.104 in July, up 3.4% year-on-year, and rose to 328.481 in August, up 3.5% year-on-year. Tonight's release of the September CPI-W reading will complete the third quarter's final monthly data point and, on that basis, set the ultimate upward adjustment to 2027 Social Security benefits. The latest forecasts suggest the 2027 COLA could reach 3.5%, above the 2.8% for 2026, and is poised to be the largest in three years. According to a survey by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal, economists expect September CPI to rise 3.6% year-on-year.

US Dollar Index Falls on the 13th

October 14 — The US Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, fell 0.4% on the day to close at 102.180 in late trading. At the end of the New York session, one euro bought 1.1201 dollars, up from 1.1156 dollars the previous session; one pound bought 1.3257 dollars, up from 1.3206 dollars. The dollar bought 158.30 Japanese yen, down from 158.68 yen; it bought 0.8325 Swiss francs, down from 0.8348 francs; it bought 1.4215 Canadian dollars, down from 1.4286 Canadian dollars; and it bought 9.9618 Swedish kronor, down from 10.0444 kronor.