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President Donald Trump has made numerous cryptic — and sometimes contradictory — remarks about his decision-making process regarding the new central bank chief.

The Labor Department reported that its CPI was up 2.7% in November from a year earlier. Energy prices, driven up by higher fuel oil prices, rose 4.2%, and so-called core inflation was up 2.6%.

The Federal Reserve reduced its key interest rate for the third time in a row Dec. 10 but signaled that it may leave rates unchanged in the coming months.

Fed officials are widely expected to cut their benchmark interest rate for a third straight time Dec. 10, in a bid to safeguard against worsening labor market conditions.

The data shows that inflation was muted in September and will bolster the case for a cut to the Fed’s key interest rate at its next meeting Dec. 9-10.

Trump for months has pressured the Fed to lower interest rates, and naming a successor to Jerome Powell would give the president his biggest chance yet to reshape the institution.

The value of retail purchases, not adjusted for inflation, increased 0.2% after a 0.6% gain in August, Commerce Department data showed, after being delayed due to the government shutdown.

In their post-meeting statement, Fed policymakers on Oct. 29 repeated their assessment that “job gains have slowed” and said “risks to employment rose in recent months.”

The central bank’s focus has shifted quickly from inflation to jobs, as hiring has grounded nearly to a halt in recent months and unemployment has ticked higher.

Money managers turned the most bullish on diesel in four weeks after Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled openness to a rate cut last month.