The stock market's stiffest headwind, a surge in Treasury bond yields, was blown aside Wednesday by a surprisingly benign inflation report, which could rekindle bets on multiple Federal Reserve rate cuts before year-end.

Annual inflation ticked up for a third straight month in December as food, energy costs rose, CPI report showed. But underlying price measure eased.

The Consumer Price Index rose 2.9 percent from a year earlier, but a measure of underlying inflation was more encouraging.