A half-point hike

As expected, or to be precise a little more than expected, U.S. consumer prices jumped in January, adding urgency in some quarters to the Fed’s plan to start raising interest rates. Among the factors behind the numbers was a tight labor market, with unemployment now at 4%. That’s led employers to raise wages to fill job openings and retain workers. Here’s your markets wrap. —David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the coronavirus pandemic and the progress of global vaccination efforts.

Money markets seem to indicate that the Fed’s pace in raising rates may be quicker given Friday’s inflation report. Already fully priced in is a full percentage point rise by the end of July. And a member of the Fed seems to agree with that sentiment. Next month just might see a half-point hike.

The U.S. restated its intention to impose “swift, severe costs” on Russia if the Kremlin further invades Ukraine, where it currently occupies Crimea and supports pro-Russia separatists in Donbas as part of a conflict that’s killed 14,000 people. The warning from Washington comes as Russia and ally Belarus begin their largest joint-military exercises in years, taking place near Ukraine’s border as well as those of NATO members Poland and Lithuania. Western allies have said that a buildup of almost 130,000 Russian troops near the Ukrainian border may signal a planned invasion, but Moscow has denied any such intention. Here’s the latest on the crisis.
Five key African economies will face debt risks over the next two years as an era of extraordinary pandemic-induced bailouts and relief for poor nations draws to an end. Ghana, Kenya, Angola, Ethiopia and Zambia have been labeled the “fragile five” among 18 countries covered in a recent report.

The U.S. Senate cleared a House-passed bill that guarantees victims of workplace sexual harassment or assault can sue as opposed to being forced into arbitration. Expected to be signed by President Joe Biden, the bill will transform how businesses resolve allegations of workplace wrongdoing.

Apple said it’s increasing the privacy of its AirTag tracking devices after several people reported the product was used to stalk them. Introduced last April, it has wireless sensors that can connect to surrounding Apple devices to pinpoint its location and that of an attached item, such as keys or a purse.

Investigators probing Donald Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, when hours passed before reinforcements were sent to secure the U.S. Capitol, have reportedly found gaps in White House telephone logs that day. The news comes after the National Archives reportedly discovered classified information in documents Trump had taken with him after leaving the White House.

Democrats have been frustrated in their hopes to pass a comprehensive voting rights bill. But Noah Feldman writes in Bloomberg Opinion that things are looking up for what he says is the most important voting rights legislation that’s possible right now: the Electoral Count Modernization Act.

With the pandemic’s turbocharged acceleration of remote-work options, many employees have sought to capitalize on the lack of personal supervision by secretly working two (or more) full-time jobs at once. But while there’s more money to be made, the strategy can bring with it significant tradeoffs, namely to one’s mental health.

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