Americans are buying a whole lot of furniture

Feb 16, 2022
Home furnishing sales went up 7.2% month over month in January, but why are people buying so much furniture?
Furniture sales climbed in January as people made themselves more comfortable at home.
Getty Images

To fight inflation, restaurants get creative with menus, portions

Jan 31, 2022
The rising cost of food is hitting restaurants — and they can only raise prices so much before customers balk.
To avoid raising prices, some restaurants rearrange menus to hide dishes with the lowest profit margins. Sometimes the plate gets a little lighter.
Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images

What's behind the housing inflation disconnect?

Jan 11, 2022
For many Americans, rents are rising much faster than official numbers suggest.
Depending on the source, rent rose anywhere from 3% to 18% last year. Above, apartments in New York City.
Drew Angerer via Getty Images

USDA program could help shore up local and regional food economies

Dec 13, 2021
The program will help state and tribal governments purchase locally produced food for nutritional assistance programs like food banks and school cafeterias.
USDA Choice beef is displayed for sale in a grocery store on November 11, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Millennials facing high inflation for the first time

Dec 1, 2021
Beset by economic instability since 9/11 and the Great Recession, many millennials feel pressured and anxious about their prospects.
Millennials have already grappled with steep housing and tuition costs, and many entered the job market during the Great Recession.
Moyo Studio via Getty Images

Inflation is hiding within retail sales spikes

Nov 16, 2021
While prices are rising for consumers, that's not discouraging them from making purchases.
A woman shops at a Miami Target in September. While retail sales were up 16.3% year over year in October, inflation is eating up a lot of that increase.
Joe Raedle via Getty Images

Why are people so glum about the economy?

Nov 12, 2021
Wages are up and unemployment is down. So why has consumer sentiment plunged to levels not seen in a decade?
The pandemic and inflation are weighing on consumers' moods, counteracting the abundance of jobs and the rise in incomes.
Spencer Platt via Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Inflation can start from perceptions — that's why the Fed surveys consumers

Jul 13, 2021
If people think prices will rise, they will modify their behavior. That could, in turn, lead to price hikes.
A New York Fed survey shows consumer expectations of inflation over the next year have reached a new high.
Scott Olson via Getty Images

Don't look for home prices in the latest inflation numbers

Jul 12, 2021
The consumer price index doesn't reflect the hot housing market, and some say that's a problem.
Different methods of calculating consumer inflation have different ways of accounting for the movement of home prices.
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images for Redfin

Consumer prices jumped again in May

Jun 10, 2021
There was a 0.6% increase in prices over April and 5% over the past year, the biggest 12-month inflation spike since 2008.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images