After a painful June, U.S. consumers are getting a slight reprieve with prices rising just 6.3 percent in July compared with a year earlier (down from 6.8 percent in June). The driving factor is drop in energy costs, which surged in June, according to the Commerce Department statistics. Core inflation costs, which include mostly food and energy, also dropped in July to 4.6 percent compared to the same month a year ago, down from 4.8 percent in June. The news could mean that inflation has peaked since starting its rise in the spring 2021—or at least in the U.S.: Global inflation is expected to continue.