According to CoinMeta, economists surveyed by Reuters expect that the U.S. annual inflation rate in July will fall from 3.5% in June to 3.4%, and the core inflation rate will drop from 2.6% last month to 2.5%. Economists at Citigroup believe that if inflation readings weaken for a second consecutive month, it would indicate that more than just one month's data points to a cooling of inflationary pressures, essentially ruling out the possibility of a rate hike in September. However, economists also predict a slight increase in core service sector inflation in July, with prices rising 0.3% month-over-month. Analysts at Bank of America suggest that a rebound in core service sector indicators could still leave the door open to a rate hike in September. If the latter view prevails and inflation data falls short of expectations, then a Fed rate hike could be postponed until December or later, analysts noted.