The US got its holiday bonus at the gas pump

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its December figures on prices and earnings, and the Saudi stimulus continued unabated. Overall inflation is at its slowest since 2008, mostly because oil prices are down almost 11%. Food costs, on the other hand, are rising. Core inflation, which excludes both of those volatile categories, is falling but stable.

And stable prices are boosting real wage growth, which adjusts nominal wage gains for inflation.