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Family of Lyle and Erik Menendez urged a judge Tuesday to let them out of prison, more than three decades after the brothers shot their parents to death.The pair, who are serving life terms for the notorious double murder, have spent two years trying to get their sentences reduced so they can be released on parole.Their cousin Anamaria Baralt told the hearing Tuesday that the men had been reformed and had earned their freedom.”We believe that 35 years is enough,” she told a courtroom, as the Menendez brothers watched via videolink from a San Diego prison.”They are universally forgiven by our family. They deserve a second chance at life.”Months of legal back-and-forth have culminated in what is expected to be a two-day hearing in Los Angeles.Every step has been eagerly watched after a public campaign bolstered by celebrity support from the likes of Kim Kardashian and supercharged by the hit Netflix miniseries “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”Blockbuster trials in the 1990s heard how the men killed Jose and Kitty Menendez in their luxury Beverly Hills home, in what prosecutors said was a cynical attempt to get their hands on a large family fortune.The men shot Jose Menendez five times with shotguns, including in the kneecaps.Kitty Menendez died from a shotgun blast in her last desperate bid to crawl away from her killers.The brothers initially blamed the deaths on a mafia hit, but changed their story several times in the ensuing months.Erik, then 18, confessed to the murders in a session with his therapist, and the brothers ultimately claimed they had acted in self-defense after years of emotional and sexual abuse at the hands of a tyrannical father.Another cousin, Tamara Goodell, told the Los Angeles hearing on Tuesday the men “have made every possible effort to rehabilitate themselves.””They now see the world through 35 years of healing. They have created careers for themselves in prison.”Diane Hernandez, niece of Kitty Menendez, said the brothers were “remarkable human beings.””There is absolutely no chance that they would break the law” if released, she said. “Their only desire is to do good.”Defense lawyers are asking the judge to reduce their clients’ sentence either so that they can be released straight away, or so they can become eligible for parole.Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman opposes the resentencing idea.He maintains that the men have never admitted to the lies they told during the investigation of the crimes, having given several discordant explanations for the killings before settling on self-defense.Without such a reckoning with the truth, he claims, the men should not be allowed out of prison.A separate appeal for clemency is being considered by California Governor Gavin Newsom.There is no definitive timeline on that appeal.

The White House questioned Tuesday the humanitarian commitment of the influential Episcopal Church after it refused to comply with a federal directive to help resettle white Afrikaners granted refugee status by the Trump administration.Trump ran on an anti-immigrant platform and essentially halted refugee arrivals in the United States after taking office, but made an exception for white Afrikaners despite South Africa’s insistence that they do not face persecution in their homeland.On Monday, around 50 white South Africans arrived for resettlement in the United States, after Trump granted them refugee status as victims of what he called a “genocide.”That claim — oft-repeated by Trump’s Pretoria-born ally, billionaire Elon Musk — has been widely dismissed as absurd, including by the South African government. On Monday, the Episcopal Church said it would end its refugee resettlement program with the US government rather than comply with orders to help resettle the white South Africans.In a statement, White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly criticized the decision as raising “serious questions about its (the Church’s) supposed commitment to humanitarian aid.”She claimed white Afrikaners — who are primarily descendants of European colonizers and whose ethnic group dominated South African politics until apartheid was abolished in 1994 — had “faced unspeakable horrors.”On Monday, the church had said it would wind up its refugee resettlement grant agreements — amounting to more than $50 million annually — with the US federal government rather than comply with Trump’s orders.In a statement, the church’s presiding bishop was scathing in his criticism of the administration’s decision to grant the white South Africans refugee status.”It has been painful to watch one group of refugees, selected in a highly unusual manner, receive preferential treatment over many others who have been waiting in refugee camps or dangerous conditions for years,” said Sean W. Rowe.Under eligibility guidelines published by the US embassy, applicants for US resettlement must either be of Afrikaner ethnicity or belong to a racial minority in South Africa.The Episcopal Church said that it could not comply with Trump’s order “in light of our church’s steadfast commitment to racial justice and reconciliation.” It said its programs with the US federal government would be wound up by the end of the fiscal year, but that its work on refugee resettlement would continue, including supporting recently arrived refugees from around the world.

Republicans geared up Tuesday for a series of crucial votes on Donald Trump’s domestic policy mega-bill, with rows over spending threatening to unravel the US president’s plans for sweeping tax cuts.Three key House committees are slated to finalize and vote on their portions of Trump’s much-touted “big, beautiful” bill, led by a roughly $5 trillion extension of his 2017 tax relief.Republicans are weighing partially covering the cost with deep cuts to the Medicaid health insurance program that benefits more than 70 million low-income people.Before it can get to Trump’s desk, the package must survive votes of the full House and Senate, where Republicans have razor-thin controlling margins.”The bill delivers what Americans voted for — tax policies that put working families first — and kick-starts a new golden era of American prosperity and strength,” said Jason Smith, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, which is charged with drafting the tax proposals. The marathon committee debates are expected to continue into the night and even spill into daytime Wednesday ahead of a make-or-break full House vote planned for next week.If any of the committees fall short, the timetable for ushering in Trump’s priorities could be upended.As the Republican billionaire seeks to cement his legacy with lasting legislation, every week is considered crucial ahead of 2026 midterm elections that could see his grip on the levers of power weakened. But the package is threatened by bitter infighting, with conservatives angling for much deeper cuts and moderates worried about threats to health coverage.Republicans plan to slash more than $700 billion from health care alone, which would leave several million people without coverage, according to a nonpartisan estimate by the Congressional Budget Office.-‘Handouts for billionaires’ -Democrats have angrily defended at-risk entitlements and hit out at tax cuts they say are a debt-inflating gift to the rich, funded by the middle class. On the tax front, House Republicans released a nearly 390-page bill Monday detailing where they want to raise revenues to cover Trump’s promised extension of the expiring 2017 tax cuts. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that this portion of the package will mean $3.7 trillion in lost revenue between 2025-2034, when savings in the text are taken into account. The president appears on course to get most of what he wants — including a four-year pause on tax on tips, overtime and interest on loans for American-made cars.There are big tax hikes on the endowments of wealthy colleges such as Harvard, Yale and Princeton, and an aggressive roll-back of Joe Biden’s clean energy tax credits.But Republicans representing districts in high-tax states have rejected as too low a proposed increase in the relief they get in state and local taxes (SALT) from $10,000 to $30,000. Democrats hosted a press event at the US Capitol to decry the proposed cuts ahead of the committee meetings, deploying a mobile billboard criticizing Republicans over the Medicaid proposals.”Let’s be clear: There’s nothing moderate, efficient, or reasonable about Donald Trump and Republicans’ dangerous plans to gut health care and force kids to go hungry so they can fund tax handouts for billionaires,” said Democratic National Committee spokesperson Aida Ross.  Twenty-five activists were arrested outside one of the committee rooms for “illegally demonstrating,” the US Capitol Police told AFP.”It is against the law to protest inside the congressional buildings,” the force said in a statement. 

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday hailed cooler-than-expected April inflation data and reiterated his call for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, as analysts warned that his tariffs may still fuel price hikes in the months ahead.The April data covers the early days of Trump’s new levies against most countries — including steep duties on China — which spooked financial markets and raised fears of a spike in US prices.Trump has since scaled back some of the duties and paused others, helping to soothe nervous investors, though tariffs remain well above their recent historical average.The consumer price index (CPI) eased to 2.3 percent in April from a year ago, a tick below the 2.4 percent figure recorded in March, the Labor Department said in a statement.The April CPI release was the smallest 12-month increase since February 2021, and was slightly lower than the median estimate from surveys of economists conducted by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.”No Inflation, and Prices of Gasoline, Energy, Groceries, and practically everything else, are DOWN!!!” Trump wrote on social media.He also took aim again at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over the central bank’s recent decision to continue holding interest rates steady.”What is wrong with Too Late Powell?” Trump said. “Not fair to America, which is ready to blossom? Just let it all happen, it will be a beautiful thing!”The inflation data did not make waves in the US financial markets, which ended the day mixed. – ‘Little relief’ -Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren took a very different view on the data to Trump. “Consumers and businesses will feel little relief from President Trump folding to Xi Jinping and are bracing for supply chain disruptions and even empty shelves,” she said in a statement, referring to the deal struck over the weekend between the United States and China to lower tariffs while continuing negotiations.Several analysts struck a cautious note about inflation on Tuesday, suggesting that now was not the time for the Fed to cut rates. “This may be the low point in 2025,” Nationwide senior economist Ben Ayers wrote in a note shared with AFP. “As tariff costs increasingly flow into consumer prices, we expect a jump in the CPI this summer, pushing the annual reading back above three percent,” he added.”Looking ahead, higher tariffs will lead to a renewed inflation impulse,” EY chief economist Gregory Daco said in a statement. But, he added, the recent tariff detente with China means that impulse will be slightly weaker than previously expected. Prices rose 0.2 percent from a month earlier, with “more than half” of the increase due to a 0.3 percent rise in shelter costs, according to the Labor Department.Excluding volatile food and energy costs, the inflation rate was 0.2 percent from a month earlier, and 2.8 percent over the past 12 months.The monthly figure was slightly below expectations, while the annual figure was in line with forecasts. – ‘Too early’ to tell -Despite the good news overall, there were nevertheless some signs of Trump’s tariffs in the data. The index for household furnishings and operations increased 1.0 percent in April after standing still in March, the Labor Department said. In a recent investor note, economists at Deutsche Bank had flagged that this data point would provide a good indication of how some “import-heavy categories” could be affected by tariffs.The energy index — which fell sharply in March — increased 0.7 percent in April, according to the Labor Department, spurred by a sharp rise in natural gas and electricity prices. The gasoline index decreased 0.1 percent over the month on a seasonally-adjusted basis, and by 11.8 percent over the past 12 months.The overall inflation data will likely be well-received by the Fed, which has indicated it is in no hurry to cut interest rates.

US President Donald Trump’s administration cut cancer research funding by 31 percent in the first three months of 2025 compared to the same period last year, according to a Senate report released Tuesday that accuses the White House of waging a “war on science.”The analysis, commissioned by the leftwing Senator Bernie Sanders, found that at least $13.5 billion in health funding had been terminated as of April, including 1,660 grants, while thousands of scientific staff were fired.Among the hardest hit was the National Cancer Institute, which lost more than $300 million from January to March compared to 2024, driving inflation-adjusted grant funding to its lowest level in over a decade. Its parent agency, the National Institutes of Health, lost $2.7 billion.”Since January, Trump has launched an unprecedented, illegal and outrageous attack on science and scientists,” said Sanders, the ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee.”Trump is not only denying scientific truth but actively seeking to undermine it.”The Health and Human Services department, led by vaccine-skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr, hit back. “Senator Sanders’ claim of a ‘war on science’ is unequivocally false. The report released by his office today is a politically motivated distortion that undermines the thousands of dedicated public health professionals across HHS, who remain steadfast in their commitment to delivering results for the American people,” the department said on X. Under Kennedy’s leadership, “HHS is streamlining programs, eliminating redundancies, and — above all else — prioritizing gold standard science,” it added.- ‘Complete chaos’ -The report, based on interviews with dozens of federal scientists and health workers, paints a picture of disarray across HHS.At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at least 175 public health datasets were deleted, leaving doctors “without vetted guidance on how to treat patients,” one physician said.A 43-year-old colorectal cancer patient, already treated with surgery, radiation, and 48 rounds of chemotherapy, said her participation in a T-cell therapy trial at the NIH was delayed due to staff shortages.”The reality is that by reducing money and staff, the NIH will not be able to produce my treatment — and it might cost me my life,” she told Senate staff.At the NIH Clinical Center, researchers described “complete chaos” after entire labs were dismissed. “This administration has a lot of blood on their hands,” said one. “We just want to take care of people.”The report also highlighted the dangers of misinformation amid a growing measles outbreak, which has infected more than 1,000 people and killed three. Over 40 grants studying vaccine hesitancy have been canceled.Meanwhile, Kennedy has hired vaccine conspiracy theorist David Geier, previously disciplined for practicing medicine without a license and testing unproven drugs on autistic children, to investigate an alleged connection between vaccines and autism, debunked by dozens of prior studies.Even as Trump proposes a 26 percent cut to the HHS budget next year, he has earmarked $500 million for Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative, which targets nutrition, physical activity, and “over-reliance on medication.”

Canada’s new government will relentlessly protect the nation’s sovereignty as it works to redefine fraught relations with the United States, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday as his cabinet was sworn in.  Carney’s election win two weeks ago was largely defined by threats from President Donald Trump, whose trade war and repeated talk of annexing the United States’ northern neighbor upended Canadian politics.Carney, a former central banker with experience leading through major financial crises, convinced enough voters that he was the right choice to take on Trump, whose tariffs on imported autos and other goods have already cost Canadian jobs. “Canadians elected this new government with a strong mandate to define a new economic and security relationship with the United States,” Carney said in a statement before his new ministers took their oaths. Addressing reporters after the ceremony, with a cabinet of Liberal Party loyalists assembled behind him, Carney said his “government will work relentlessly to keep Canada secure as a sovereign nation.”Trump discussed absorbing Canada into the United States on several occasions in his first Oval Office meeting with Carney last week.  The president insisted it would be a “wonderful marriage” if Canada agreed to his repeated calls to become the 51st US state.Carney replied the Canada “won’t be for sale, ever,” and referenced the deep hostility among Canadians towards the prospect of a political union with the United States. – ‘Core mission’ -Carney’s cabinet retains several key figures involved in negotiating with the Trump administration over tariffs, although some job titles have shifted. Dominic LeBlanc, who has dealt directly with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in recent weeks, has been named the minister responsible for Canada-US trade. Former foreign minister Melanie Joly has been moved to industry minister, with Anita Anand replacing her as Canada’s top diplomat.Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne is keeping his post. Since taking over from Justin Trudeau on March 14 as prime minister, Carney has tried to create distance from the previous Liberal regime, which became deeply unpopular over its decade in power. His cabinet includes Trudeau allies, but also brings in new faces. Evan Solomon, a prominent former journalist entering parliament for the first time, has been named minister for artificial intelligence, a new post nodding at Carney’s pledge to transform Canada’s economy. Carney said his cabinet will be focused on a “core mission,” which is “to create the strongest economy in the G7.”He promised to act fast on a middle class tax cut and remove inter-provincial trade barriers by Canada Day, on July 1, a move some economist believe could soften the impact of Trump’s tariffs. Carney had a lucrative career as an investment banker before serving as the governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England. He is a political novice who will be new to parliament when the House of Commons reconvenes on May 27, opening with a throne speech by King Charles III, the head of state in Canada, a member of the British Commonwealth. But Carney assured voters his experience in the private sector and as a central banker will help him rebuild Canada’s economy, a message that resonated with voters. Opinion polls showed the Liberals trailing the Conservatives by more than 20 points at the start of the year, but Carney’s replacing Trudeau, combined with Trump’s threats, sparked an unprecedented comeback. The Liberals fell just short of the 172 seats needed for majority control of Parliament, but with 170 confirmed wins they will be in a strong position to pass legislation.

The US Senate’s top Democrat announced Tuesday he would hold up all Justice Department political appointees in protest over President Donald Trump’s acceptance of a $400 million luxury plane as a gift from Qatar.The Gulf state’s royal family has offered to donate a 747-8 jumbo jet as Trump awaits the delayed delivery of two new presidential planes from Boeing.But the move raises huge constitutional and ethical questions — as well as security concerns about using an aircraft donated by a foreign power for use as the ultra-sensitive Air Force One.”This is not just naked corruption, it is also a grave national security threat,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a floor speech Tuesday. Schumer’s blanket hold — the first time he has ever resorted to such a move — applies to dozens of would-be appointees, and could significantly delay their start dates in the Trump administration.But very few Trump nominees were benefiting from bipartisan agreements to fast-track them through the Senate in any case, meaning Schumer’s announcement will likely only have a limited practical impact. The US Constitution prohibits government officials from accepting gifts “from any King, Prince or foreign State,” in a section known as the Emoluments Clause.Schumer called for the Justice Department’s Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) unit to “disclose all activities by Qatari foreign agents inside the US that could benefit” Trump or his businesses.He also demanded information from the administration about the jet itself, such as whether it comes with security enhancements or would have to be upgraded by the United States. “How much will those modifications cost American taxpayers? Hundreds of billions of dollars? Hundreds of millions of dollars? Billions of dollars?” he asked.And he called for an explanation of what the jet means for future presidential planes that the government has already agreed to buy from Boeing.The veteran New York Democrat is also demanding that Attorney General Pam Bondi — who once served as a lobbyist for the Qatari government — testify before Congress to explain her approval of the gift.Although Democrats are out of power and cannot block Trump appointees on their own, several have announced holds on groups or individuals that make the confirmation process more drawn-out and unwieldy.Senator Chris Murphy has also pledged to force votes to block weapons sales to Qatar.Trump, on a trip this week to the Middle East including Qatar, has long been unhappy with the current Air Force One jets — two highly customized Boeing 747-200B series aircraft that entered service in 1990 under president George H.W. Bush.Under questioning from reporters on Monday, Trump angrily defended the arrangement with Qatar, saying he would be “stupid” not to accept such a gift.

Sean “Diddy” Combs’s former partner Casandra Ventura told jurors at the music mogul’s sex trafficking trial Tuesday how he “controlled” her life and brutally beat her to keep her in line.Jurors have heard accusations that the hip-hop star used violence and threats of reputational ruin to manipulate women, including Ventura, whom he allegedly abused for years.”Sean controlled a lot of my life — whether it was (my) career, the way I dressed,” said Ventura, who is heavily pregnant and will take regular breaks from her graphic testimony that could last several days.”He had many resources” to potentially use compromising sexual videos of Ventura to exploit the celebrated singer and model, she said, pausing to dab her eye with a tissue.”He would mash me in my head, knock me over, drag me, kick me, stomp me on the head if I was down,” she said, her voice shaking at points.In a hotel surveillance clip from March 2016 shown to jurors Monday, Combs is apparently seen brutally beating and dragging Ventura — widely known as “Cassie” — down a hallway.A former security officer at a Los Angeles-area InterContinental hotel, Israel Florez, told the court Monday that he was first on the scene after the incident and that Combs sought to pay him off.Florez’s testimony provided the foundation for the prosecution to introduce the security footage that was published by CNN last year.The panel of 12 jurors and six alternates responsible for determining Combs’s fate heard of the famed artist’s explosive outbursts and an attempt to preserve his own reputation and celebrity through bribery.But the 55-year-old’s defense team insisted while some of his behavior was questionable — at times constituting domestic abuse — it did not amount to evidence of racketeering and sex trafficking with which he is charged.- ‘Coercive and criminal’ -Combs has pleaded not guilty on all counts, including the racketeering charge that the hip-hop pioneer led a sex crime ring that included drug-fueled sex parties by use of force, threats and violence.Prosecutor Emily Johnson told jurors Combs had set a man’s car ablaze and dangled a woman from a balcony, and made impossible demands of his lovers and employees.”Let me be clear,” US attorney Johnson said, “this case is not about a celebrity’s private sexual preferences.””It’s coercive and criminal.”But Combs’s defense lawyer Teny Geragos told jurors the “case is about love, jealousy and infidelity and money.”Geragos called Combs’s accusers “capable, strong adult women,” and said his situation with Ventura was a “toxic relationship” but “between two people who loved each other.””Being a willing participant in your own sex life is not sex trafficking,” she said, adding that the defense would admit there was domestic violence — but that Combs is not charged with such crimes.Florez’s testimony was followed by a male dancer who engaged in a sexual relationship, often in exchange for money, with Combs and Ventura from 2012 to approximately the end of 2013. He concluded his testimony Tuesday.Ventura said of the so-called “freak-off” sex parties that she was “just in love and wanted to make (Combs) happy — to a point I didn’t feel like I had much of a choice.”Combs’s defense team said they would seek to emphasize that Ventura took drugs of her own free will, and behaved erratically.If convicted, the one-time rap producer and global superstar, who is often credited for his role in bringing hip-hop into the mainstream, could spend the rest of his life in prison. The proceedings are expected to last eight to 10 weeks, and Combs was joined in the courthouse by family members as well as former lovers including Misa Hylton.

Sean “Diddy” Combs’s former partner Casandra Ventura told jurors at the music mogul’s sex trafficking trial Tuesday how he “controlled” her life and wielded compromising sexual blackmail material to keep her in line.Jurors have heard the hip-hop icon used violence and threats of reputational ruin to manipulate women, including Ventura, whom he allegedly abused for years.”(Combs) controlled a lot of my life,” said Ventura, who is heavily pregnant and will take regular breaks from her graphic testimony that could last several days.”He had many resources” to potentially use compromising sexual videos of Ventura to exploit the celebrated singer and model, she said, pausing to dab her eye with a tissue.In a hotel surveillance clip from March 2016 shown to jurors Monday, Combs is apparently seen brutally beating and dragging Ventura — widely known as “Cassie” — down a hallway.A former security officer at a Los Angeles-area InterContinental hotel, Israel Florez, told the court Monday that he was first on the scene after the incident and that Combs sought to pay him off.Florez’s testimony provided the foundation for the prosecution to introduce the security footage that was published by CNN last year.The panel of 12 jurors and six alternates responsible for determining Combs’s fate heard of the famed artist’s explosive outbursts and an attempt to preserve his own reputation and celebrity through bribery.But the 55-year-old’s defense team insisted while some of his behavior was questionable — at times constituting domestic abuse — it did not amount to evidence of racketeering and sex trafficking with which he is charged.- ‘Coercive and criminal’ -Combs has pleaded not guilty on all counts, including the racketeering charge that the hip-hop pioneer led a sex crime ring that included drug-fueled sex parties by use of force, threats and violence.Prosecutor Emily Johnson told jurors Combs had set a man’s car ablaze and dangled a woman from a balcony, and made impossible demands of his lovers and employees.”Let me be clear,” US attorney Johnson said, “this case is not about a celebrity’s private sexual preferences.””It’s coercive and criminal.”But Combs’s defense lawyer Teny Geragos told jurors the “case is about love, jealousy and infidelity and money.”Geragos called Combs’s accusers “capable, strong adult women,” and said his situation with Ventura was a “toxic relationship” but “between two people who loved each other.””Being a willing participant in your own sex life is not sex trafficking,” she said, adding that the defense would admit there was domestic violence — but that Combs is not charged with such crimes.Florez’s testimony was followed by a male dancer who engaged in a sexual relationship, often in exchange for money, with Combs and Ventura from 2012 to approximately the end of 2013. He concluded his testimony Tuesday.If convicted, the one-time rap producer and global superstar, who is often credited for his role in bringing hip-hop into the mainstream, could spend the rest of his life in prison. The proceedings are expected to last eight to 10 weeks, and Combs was joined in the courthouse by family members as well as former lovers including Misa Hylton.

US consumer inflation cooled slightly in April, but analysts warned prices could spike in the coming months as businesses grapple with President Donald Trump’s sweeping “liberation day” tariffs.The data released Tuesday covers the early days of Trump’s new levies against most countries — including steep duties on China — which spooked financial markets and raised fears of a spike in prices. The US president has since reversed some of the duties and paused others, helping to soothe nervous investors. The consumer price index (CPI) eased to 2.3 percent in April from a year ago, a tick below the 2.4 percent figure recorded in March, the Labor Department said in a statement.”The CPI report shows that the American people are experiencing real economic relief: grocery, gas, and egg prices are down, while real wages are up,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren took a different view on the data.”Consumers and businesses will feel little relief from President Trump folding to Xi Jinping and are bracing for supply chain disruptions and even empty shelves,” she said in a statement, referring to the deal struck over the weekend between the United States and China to lower tariffs. The April CPI release was the smallest 12-month increase since February 2021, and was slightly lower than the median estimate from surveys of economists conducted by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.”This may be the low point in 2025,” Nationwide senior economist Ben Ayers wrote in a note shared with AFP. “As tariff costs increasingly flow into consumer prices, we expect a jump in the CPI this summer, pushing the annual reading back above three percent,” he added.”Looking ahead, higher tariffs will lead to a renewed inflation impulse,” EY chief economist Gregory Daco said in a statement. But, he added, the recent tariff detente with China means that impulse will be slightly weaker than previously expected. Prices rose 0.2 percent from a month earlier, with “more than half” of the increase due to a 0.3 percent rise in shelter costs, according to the Labor Department.Excluding volatile food and energy costs, the inflation rate was 0.2 percent from a month earlier, and 2.8 percent over the past 12 months.The monthly figure was slightly below expectations, while the annual figure was in line with forecasts. US stocks were mixed in early trading. – ‘Too early’ to tell -Despite the good news overall, there were nevertheless some signs of Trump’s tariffs in the data. The index for household furnishings and operations increased 1.0 percent in April after standing still in March, the Labor Department said. In a recent investor note, economists at Deutsche Bank had flagged that this data point would provide a good indication of how some “import-heavy categories” could be affected by tariffs.But, they added, it was still “too early for tariffs to be evident in the aggregate numbers.” The energy index — which fell sharply in March — increased 0.7 percent in April, according to the Labor Department, spurred by a sharp rise in natural gas and electricity prices. The gasoline index decreased 0.1 percent over the month on a seasonally-adjusted basis, and by 11.8 percent over the past 12 months.The data will likely be well-received by the US Federal Reserve as it weighs when to cut interest rates.Futures traders see a roughly 90 percent chance the central bank will extend its recent pause at the next rate decision in June, holding its benchmark lending rate at between 4.25 and 4.50 percent, according to data from CME Group.