Moreover, higher oil prices, if they persist, are likely to boost core consumer prices, as well as the total price level, in this country. The recent modest declines in oil and natural gas prices may or may not signal a trend but are nonetheless welcome.
*** The end of deflationary fears and the onset of modest upward pressure on costs, coupled with a strengthening economic outlook in the United States, have driven long-term interest rates higher, which has spurred a marked shift in credit flows and has prompted many firms to focus on the possibility of further interest rate increases in developing their hedging strategies.