Economic Data Bolster Soft Landing Hopes

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Falling inflation. Moderating wage growth. Resilient consumer spending. This is what a soft landing would look like. It is too soon to say whether the Federal Reserve will succeed in its effort to bring inflation under control without causing a recession. But recent economic data — including two reports released Friday — have looked more positive than even optimists had dared to hope a few months ago. Data from the Commerce Department on Friday showed that inflation continued to cool in June, even as consumer spending rose — signs that the economy retains substantial momentum 16 months into the Fed’s campaign to slow it down. Separate data from the Labor Department showed that wage growth slowed in the spring — an encouraging sign for policymakers who have been worried that rapid pay increases could feed into inflation.