More Bad News For The Economy
More Bad News For The Economy – Posted by Catherine Morgan (cross-posted at the Care2 Election Blog)
Bad news all around today for the economy. We are paying more for gas, food, healthcare, heating, and medications…just to name a few. The only prices going down, are the values of our homes. The worst part is…there is really no sign of things getting any better, anytime soon. In fact, even the experts weren’t predicting things to get this bad, this fast. The average, middle-class citizen, is feeling the pinch.
Wholesale Prices Jump in January…
Battered by bad economic news, consumer confidence plunged while wholesale food, energy and medicine costs soared, pushing inflation up at the fastest pace in a quarter century.
The big jump in wholesale prices followed a report last week that consumer prices had risen by a worse-than-expected 0.4 percent, reflecting higher costs for food, energy and health care.
The wholesale report said that energy prices jumped 1.5 percent, as gasoline prices rose by 2.9 percent and the cost of home heating oil jumped by 8.5 percent.
Food prices, which have been surging because of increased demand stemming from ethanol production, rose by 1.7 percent last month, the biggest monthly increase in three years. Prices for beef, bakery products and eggs were all up sharply.
Core wholesale inflation, which excludes food and energy, posted a 0.4 percent increase, the biggest increase in 11 months. This gain was led by a 1.5 percent spike in the cost of prescription and non-prescription drugs.
From The Associated Press…
Consumer confidence plunged in February as Americans worried about less-favorable business conditions and job prospects, a business-backed research group said Tuesday.
The Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 75 this month from a revised 87.3 in January.
The reading was the lowest since the index registered 64.8 in February 2003, just before the U.S. invaded Iraq, researchers said, and was far below the 83 expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson/IFR.
U.S. home prices dropped 8.9 percent in the final quarter of 2007 compared with a year ago, Standard & Poor’s said Tuesday, the steepest decline in the 20-year history of its housing index.
“We reached a somber year-end for the housing market in 2007,” said one of the index’s creators Robert Shiller. “Home prices across the nation and in most metro areas are significantly lower than where they were a year ago. Wherever you look, things look bleak.”
I have heard some interesting tips on shopping today…
1. Supermarket sales rotate about every three months. So if something that you usually buy is on sale, don’t wait until you need it to buy it. Buy as much as you can on sale, and maybe consider buying enough of that item to last you several weeks, so you won’t have to pay full price for it later.
2. Oftentimes pharmacies that carry some food items, have milk and eggs at reduced prices?
3. Buy snacks at “super-stores”, like Walmart and Target, often the prices on these items are lower.
Here are some more consumer tips…
Are you worried about your personal finances? Are you changing the way you spend money?
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Time: March 31, 2008, 2:50 pm
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