The ASX is down and brent crude has topped $US100 a barrel, stoking fresh inflation worries.The oil price surge sent Wall Street lower, with renewed doubts about whether massive AI spending would deliver returns adding to the sell-off.Follow the day's financial news and insights from our specialist business reporters on our live blog.Disclaimer: this blog is not intended as investment advice.The Bureau of Statistics will publish Australia's second quarter inflation figures on Wednesday.A hotter-than-expected number will put pressure on the Reserve Bank to hike interest rates in August.That could be an underlying inflation figure of more than 3.8%.Here's the latest commentary on this from betashares chief economist David Bassanese: As it stands, the RBA forecast annual trimmed mean inflation to reach 3.8% in the June quarter in the May Statement on Monetary Policy 10 remain unchanged.Energy is the standout, up around 1.5%, as oil trades at around $US100 a barrel, boosting the outlook for producers.But higher oil prices are also adding to inflation and interest-rate concerns, weighing on much of the rest of the market.As we were anticipating, the ASX has fallen in early morning trade