December 2025 CPI Holds at 2.7% as DOJ Opens Criminal Probe Into Fed Chair Powell Over Congressional Testimony

The BLS released December 2025 CPI data on January 13, 2026, showing headline inflation at 2.7% year-over-year and food prices surging 0.7% month-over-month — the largest monthly food increase in 27 months. Simultaneously, the DOJ had served grand jury subpoenas to the Federal Reserve on January 9, 2026, opening a criminal investigation of Chair Jerome Powell over his June 2025 congressional testimony about a $2.5 billion Fed headquarters renovation. Powell said the threat of criminal charges was an attempt to pressure the Fed to lower interest rates, framing it as an assault on central bank independence.