Inflation across the U.S. continued to recede in August as the rate of price hikes returns to pre-pandemic levels.

Policymakers are expected to announce a long-awaited rate cut next week, as inflation cools and worries spread about a weakening job market.

The post-pandemic spike in U.S. inflation eased further last month as year-over-year price increases reached a three-year low, clearing the way for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates and likely shaping the economic debate in the final weeks of the presidential race.