To the naked eye, a key US inflation metric held steady in March. But look a little closer at two or three decimal places and you’ll see that it actually picked up. The difference matters because the personal consumption expenditures price index is an inflation gauge favored by Federal Reserve policymakers — one that ultimately will shape their views on when to cut interest rates. The core PCE, which excludes food and energy costs, came in at 0.3% for a second month in March, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis data rounded to one decimal. Digging a little deeper, the pace accelerated to 0.32% from 0.27%, and ... (full story)