People in the United States are experiencing the highest levels of inflation in 30 years. The U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics reported prices have gone up 6.2%, the highest annual increase since 1990.
Compared to 2020, data shows food is up an average of 5.3% with some items like beef, reported to be up an average of 20%.
At the pump, gas prices are up 49.6% from 2020.
As she checked off her grocery list Thursday, Diana Gundy experienced sticker shock for her milk, meat and more.
“The prices are going sky high, for a gallon of milk, I mean I am on a fixed income,” she said.
President Joe Biden addressed the inflation numbers earlier this week.
“Inflation hurts Americans pocketbooks, and reversing this trend is a top priority for me,” he said.
Dr. Isar Kiani, a marketing professor at St. John Fisher College, explained the inflation rate comes down to supply and demand and the inflation rates could seem extraordinarily high due to lack of consumer spending at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 as people went without purchasing things like gas and vacations.
“Now supply is seeing a lot of demand for some of these products so they also raise the price,” she said.
She said it is unlikely prices would go down any time soon, explaining it could be the new normal until supply and wages catch up to balance out the market.
“As soon as we have the demand and the supply balance, everything goes back to what we had before, but I don’t mean the number I mean the perception of it.”
Dr. Kiani warned the fear of rising prices could lead to people stocking up at the grocery store, something to keep in mind heading into the holidays.
