A gauge of core US services inflation watched closely by Federal Reserve officials re-accelerated last month, highlighting the potentially bumpy path back to pre-pandemic levels. The measure rose 4.1% in the 12 months through July, in the first acceleration this year, according to Bloomberg calculations based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data published Thursday. That follows a 4% reading in June which at the time was the lowest in 18 months. On a monthly basis, the gauge rose 0.2%. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues raised the central bank’s benchmark interest rate last month to the highest level in 22 ... (full story)