Traders boost bets on Fed rate cuts after PPI, jobless claims data

(Reuters) -Futures that settle to the Federal Reserve’s policy rate reflected rising bets that the U.S. central bank will deliver a pair of back-to-back interest rate cuts starting in September, after government data on Thursday showed US weekly jobless claims were steady at elevated levels.

A separate government report showed producer prices rose 2.6% in May from a year earlier, in line with economists’ expectations. Before the reports, rate-futures prices had reflected bets the Fed would deliver a first rate cut in September to be followed by one in December.

(Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)