Consumer prices have risen nearly 20% since President Joe Biden took office as inflation continues to sting and elevated interest rates make taking on debt more difficult for Americans.
Bankrate analyst Sarah Foster joined “NewsNation Live” to discuss how prices are expected to change in the coming months, saying economists are optimistic.
“Economists are actually slightly more hopeful that we might get to that 2% inflation threshold, that’s often considered really the Goldilocks level of inflation, not too hot, not too cold, maybe by the end of this year, but if not by some point in 2025,” Foster said.
Excluding gas prices and auto sales, retail sales fell 0.1% from March to April.
Retail sales were also dragged down by a 1.2% drop in online business, reflecting a new sales event at Amazon and the earlier timing of Easter this year, according to Michael Pearce, deputy chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics. Business at electronics stores was up 1.5%. Sales at home furnishings stores slipped 0.5%. Sales at clothing and accessories stores posted a 1.6% gain.
“Of course, we do know that Americans’ wages haven’t kept up with inflation. We did a survey of workers at Bankrate. And we found that more than half of Americans who received a raise say that their pay didn’t keep up with the increases in the overall cost of living. So we do understand that pain. But what I think this really helps Americans is that the strong job market at least allows them to maybe weather some of those higher costs,” Foster said.
There have been some hints that the Federal Reserve’s campaign to cool inflation by reining in spending may be taking hold. Employers pulled back on hiring in April adding 175,000 jobs, still a solid number, but down sharply from the surprisingly strong 315,000 hires in March.