U.S. consumer prices rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier, the fastest increase since April 2023. Energy costs, especially gasoline, drove much of the rise as conflict disrupted oil shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
News Mash
U.S. inflation rose to 4.2% in May, the highest level in three years, as energy costs tied to the Iran war continued to climb. Core inflation increased 2.9%, while wage growth lagged behind the broader rise in prices.
A fragile U.S.-Iran ceasefire collapsed after an American Apache helicopter was downed near the Strait of Hormuz, prompting U.S. strikes on Iranian targets. Iran responded with attacks targeting U.S.-linked military sites in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, with air defenses reporting interceptions.
Pakistan says air strikes along the Afghan border killed 26 militants and destroyed four targets. Afghanistan’s Taliban government says the strikes killed 13 civilians, including 11 children.
Trump said Bill Pulte will become acting director of national intelligence on June 19 while remaining head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The decision has sparked bipartisan concern and threatened renewal of Section 702, a surveillance authority set to expire Friday.
Graham Platner won Maine’s Democratic Senate primary and will face Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a race Democrats see as key to control of the Senate. Tuesday’s primaries also showed Donald Trump’s continued sway in Republican contests in South Carolina and Nevada.
South African police said more than 10 attackers killed 12 people and wounded at least nine others in an informal settlement in Cleveland, Johannesburg. No arrests have been made, and police said the motive remains unknown.