US: CPI and retail sales in focus - BBH

Analysts at BBH point out that US reports CPI and retail sales for December today and will be the key economic releases.  

Key Quotes

“There are two reasons why there could be downside risks on the headline.  Gasoline prices fell about 3% in the month.  The PPI component of finished consumer goods fell 0.4% in December after a 1.7% rise in November.  On the other hand, retail sales likely remained robust, especially in the components that are used for GDP calculations.  Recall that both the headline and core sales rose 0.8% in November.   It is unreasonable to expect that pace to be sustained.  The question is how much of a moderation to expect.  Anything less than half will be considered good.”