White House "Shutdown aftermath could lead to permanent non-release of October CPI and employment indicators"

The White House said that, as a result of the government shutdown (work stoppage), major economic indicators such as the October consumer price index (CPI) and the employment report are likely to remain unreleased.

On the 13th (local time), according to NBC News, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a briefing, "The Democrats have inflicted permanent damage on the federal statistical system. It is likely that the October CPI and the employment report will not be released, and the reliability of all economic data released in the future will also be undermined."

She added, "This could cause the Federal Reserve (Fed) to be 'flying blind' at a critical time." Economists had already anticipated that the October CPI indicator might not be released. This is because field survey personnel have not been deployed since October 1 due to the shutdown.

The White House later clarified, "The September employment report collected before the shutdown will be released once the government is normalized," while also saying, "the October employment report that was scheduled to be released last week may remain unpublished."