#inflation

#inflation

The economy is wild in America right now. From inflation to shrinkflation, and of course, we can't forget eggflation. It seems these days, even the once most affordable food items - like the egg, which was previously priced at around $2 for a dozen at my local grocery store, are now $6. I mean, even the dollar menu has disappeared from most fast food joints.

When discussing affordability, it is important to note that while the CPI price level has increased 26% since 2019, wages have increased 30%,

As the MTA prepares to increase the transit fare to $3 on Jan. 4, pizza prices across town are substantially higher than the cost to ride the train. The typical price of a plain slice of pizza in New York City now approaches $4, according to a decadelong survey of hundreds of slice joints conducted by this reporter across the city. Pizzamakers and experts who have followed the rising prices point to the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation as the cause of the increasing disparity between the price of a subway ride and that of a regular slice of pizza.

Slower job growth. Just look at the November employment report - very soft if you average the last couple of months. But real earnings growth, average hourly earnings growth, up 3.7% on a year-on-year basis. And that helps to weather a little bit of this inflation pressure that we are feeling right now. And I think that's the true storyline.

Everything is very difficult, there's a lot of uncertainty, says Venezuelan taxi driver Jose Luis Ledezma, who works in Caracas. Ledezma has been hit hard by the collapse in trips to Maiquetia airport, his most common route. I used to do six trips a day to the airport. Now, if I do three a week, that's a lot, he explains. I work with people of all ages, from wealthy people to very poor people. I see nervousness.

In response to a survey asking, "Which of the following do you think have increased the most in cost for you over the past year?" groceries and food topped the list at 64%, followed by housing at 50%, utilities at 33%, restaurants and entertainment at 28%, taxes at 25%, health care at 23% and home insurance at 22%. Joint Venture conducted its poll in August, surveying 1,750 residents from Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Francisco and San Mateo counties.

Consumers confidence in the economy was shaken in December as Americans grow anxious about high prices and the impact of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell 3.8 points to 89.1 in December from November's upwardly revised reading of 92.9. In April, when Trump rolled out his import taxes on U.S. trading partners, the reading was 85.7.

AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta President Donald Trump took a victory lap over and credited his tariff-heavy trade policy for the promising economic news announced on Tuesday. According to the Department of Commerce, the economy grew at an annualized rate of 4.3% between July and September, a two-year quarterly high. It also easily outstripped the 3.2% growth rate forecasted by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal, which provided additional context on the data: The data show the economy growing

Case in point: Ina new CBS News/YouGov poll, 61% of U.S. adultssay President Trump makes prices and inflation sound better than they really are. Trump's approval rating on the economy sat at 37%, just one point higher than a month earlier,in the poll of 2,300 adults. Respondents were more than twice as likely to say Trump's policies, notformer President Biden's, are responsible for the economy.

This December, Americans are coming together with their loved ones to celebrate what really matters: Toyotathon. During the holidays, when car companies offer sales to clear out their leftover inventory, "well-qualified buyers" can find some of the year's best deals. You can have yourself a Happy Honda Days, make the most of the Chevy Red Tag Savings Event, or splurge during Lexus December to Remember.

The Social Security Administration announced a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2026, which will benefit approximately 75 million Americans receiving Social Security and Supplemental Security Income payments. This increase translates to an average monthly boost of about $56 for Social Security retirement beneficiaries starting in January 2026, with SSI recipients seeing their increased payments begin on December 31, 2025. The 2026 COLA of 2.8% represents a slight increase from the 2.5% adjustment in 2025, though it remains below the 3.1% average COLA over the past decade.

The Consumer Price Index print for November lit a fire under stocks as it came in much lower than expected at 2.7%. However, many on Wall Street were quick to throw cold water on the party, saying the data was incomplete due to the government shutdown and that we need to see complete December statistics in January to make sure a lower inflation trend is indeed in place.

Credit scores are lower than they've ever been, particularly with Gen Z," Goodarzi told Editorial Director Andrew Nusca at Fortune Brainstorm AI last week. Credit balances across the board are also the highest they've been, Goodarzi added, but Gen Z are disproportionately hurting in this category, too. "[Gen Z] credit card balances are up 36-37%," Goodarzi added. But there's one silver lining: "They still have jobs," Goodarzi said. "And that's what's really keeping things together."