RaoscaffResearch
Prediction Series · Lock · Issue P-136
Prediction Series · P-136

US August CPI ceiling — ≤3.7% YoY, locked at 82%.

82% probability the US August 2026 headline CPI prints at or below 3.7% year-on-year — a ceiling above the ~3.4% consensus, on inflation stuck in the low-to-mid 3s. Resolves 11 Sep 2026 via the BLS.

Type · Prediction Lock · structural inflation ceiling Locked · 2026-08-13 · before the August CPI release Resolves · 2026-09-11 · BLS CPI report, August 2026 (bls.gov) Scored · binary: August 2026 headline CPI YoY ≤3.7% yes/no
US August 2026 headline CPI · our locked ceiling
≤ 3.7%
headline CPI YoY · vs ~3.4% consensus

US headline CPI has run in the low-to-mid 3% range through 2026; the consensus for the August print is ~3.4% YoY (headline +0.2% MoM). Our 3.7% ceiling sits above consensus, so it fails only on a hotter-than-expected upside surprise. Source: BLS CPI report for August 2026, released 11 Sep 2026 (bls.gov).

— 1 · The Locked Call

US August 2026 headline CPI prints ≤3.7% YoY — P = 0.82.

We lock a binary: the US August 2026 headline (all-items) CPI inflation rate prints at or below 3.7% year-on-year, per the BLS. Confidence 82%.

— 2 · Why it's nail-able — and why only 82%

Inflation is sticky but range-bound; the ceiling sits above consensus.

Headline CPI has held in the low-to-mid 3s all year and the consensus is ~3.4%, ~0.3pt under our ceiling. We hold 82%, not higher, because a tariff pass-through or an energy spike could push a single month above 3.7% — inflation surprises are the disclosed tail. Resolves against the first-published BLS August headline CPI.

Locked on 2026-08-13 — scored against the BLS August 2026 CPI report.

RAOSCAFF locks P-136 on 2026-08-13, before the August CPI release. Scored against the US August 2026 headline CPI year-on-year rate versus a 3.7% ceiling.

Locked
2026-08-13 (commit timestamp on origin/main)
Resolves
2026-09-11 — BLS CPI report for August 2026
Source
US Bureau of Labor Statistics (bls.gov) all-items CPI, YoY
Scored by
Binary: YES if August 2026 headline CPI YoY ≤3.7%; NO otherwise

Ceiling sits above the ~3.4% consensus — a tariff/energy upside surprise is the disclosed tail.