81%, no, now 85% of Americans Increasingly See Corporations Being Greedy as Cause of Inflation

Why the Corporate Tax Bracket Should Go Back to 52%

It’s time to again tax the rich, be they individuals or giant corporations, to restore the American middle class and return our nation to the vitality that, before the Reagan Revolution, was normal...

When asked what drives the economy, many Americans have a simple, single answer that comes to mind immediately: “greed.” They believe the rich and powerful have designed the economy to benefit themselves and have left others with too little or with nothing at all.

Corporations across industries, from housing to groceries and used cars, are juicing their profit margins even as the cost of doing business goes down. And they’re not hiding the ball. Since the summer of 2021, Groundwork began listening in on hundreds of corporate earnings calls where we heard CEO after CEO boasting about their ability to raise prices on consumers.


Now we hear something slightly different: CEOs crowing about keeping their prices high while their costs go down.

We’ve come a long way in bringing inflation down since its peak in 2022. But stamping out inflation once and for all will require a concerted effort to rein in the corporate profiteering.

Cameron wrote:No, It’s Not “Inflation” — We’re Just Getting Ripped Off. Here’s Proof.

Corporations across industries, from housing to groceries and used cars, are juicing their profit margins even as the cost of doing business goes down. And they’re not hiding the ball. Since the summer of 2021, Groundwork began listening in on hundreds of corporate earnings calls where we heard CEO after CEO boasting about their ability to raise prices on consumers.


Now we hear something slightly different: CEOs crowing about keeping their prices high while their costs go down.

We’ve come a long way in bringing inflation down since its peak in 2022. But stamping out inflation once and for all will require a concerted effort to rein in the corporate profiteering.

I won't hold my breath.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation has changed the way many Americans shop. Now, those changes in consumer habits are helping bring down inflation.

Fed up with prices that remain about 19%, on average, above where they were before the pandemic, consumers are fighting back. In grocery stores, they're shifting away from name brands to store-brand items, switching to discount stores or simply buying fewer items like snacks or gourmet foods.

More Americans are buying used cars, too, rather than new, forcing some dealers to provide discounts on new cars again. But the growing consumer pushback to what critics condemn as price-gouging has been most evident with food as well as with consumer goods like paper towels and napkins.

The average price paid for a new vehicle in the United States fell 1.2% in January from a year earlier, to $47,338, according to data collected by Edmunds.com. That’s down 2.4% from a peak of $48,516 set in December 2022. Though the drop is relatively modest, analysts predict that prices will keep falling this year, especially for new vehicles, as availability grows and automakers are compelled to lower prices.

The average price of a used vehicle — $27,297 as of last month — is down 3% from a year ago and 12% below the peak of $31,095 in April 2022. Analysts expect used-auto prices to fall further before rising slightly once the peak buying season resumes in the spring.

Possibly the biggest story today in terms of its impact on most Americans’ lives is that as part of its war on junk fees, the Biden administration announced an $8 cap on late fees charged by credit card issuers that have more than a million accounts. These companies hold more than 95% of outstanding credit card debt. Currently, fees average $32, and they fall on more than 45 million people. The White House estimates that late fees currently cost Americans about $25 billion a year. The rule change will save Americans about $10 billion a year.

The administration also announced a “strike force” to crack down on “unfair and illegal pricing.” Certain corporations raised prices as strained supply chains made it more expensive to make their products. But after supply chains were fixed and their costs dropped, corporations kept consumer prices high and passed on record profits to their shareholders. The strike force will encourage federal agencies to share information to enable them to identify businesses that are breaking the law.

Some grocery items are dropping in price compared to January, including pork chops (down 3.4%), frankfurters (-3.8%), fresh whole chicken (-2.9%), frozen fish and seafood (-2.6%), and fresh fruits (-1.6%)

"Fruits and vegetables ....[saw] the largest decline since April of 2023" due to improvements in the supply chain, said Reed.

But costs for some categories have remained stubbornly high. Egg prices are down 17% year over year, but up 5.8% compared to the month prior. "The price of eggs today are double what they were five years ago," per Swanson.

Floyd Robertson wrote:Good new when many grocery prices are coming down. Also, no one forces people to eat out.

Inflation: Grocery prices are plateauing, while the cost to dine out is rising at a lower rate

Some grocery items are dropping in price compared to January, including pork chops (down 3.4%), frankfurters (-3.8%), fresh whole chicken (-2.9%), frozen fish and seafood (-2.6%), and fresh fruits (-1.6%)

"Fruits and vegetables ....[saw] the largest decline since April of 2023" due to improvements in the supply chain, said Reed.

But costs for some categories have remained stubbornly high. Egg prices are down 17% year over year, but up 5.8% compared to the month prior. "The price of eggs today are double what they were five years ago," per Swanson.

Egg prices soared to historically high levels in 2022 — and one group is alleging the trend is due to something more nefarious than simple economics.

Across all egg types, consumers saw average prices jump 60% last year — among the largest percentage increases of any U.S. good or service, according to the consumer price index, an inflation measure.

Large, Grade A eggs cost $4.25 a dozen in December, on average — a 138% increase from $1.79 a year earlier, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The industry narrative has largely focused on a historic outbreak of avian influenza — which has killed tens of millions of egg-laying hens — as the primary driver of those higher prices.

But Farm Action, a farmer-led advocacy group, claims the “real culprit” is a “collusive scheme” among major egg producers to fix and gouge prices, the organization said in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission.

Doing so has helped producers “extract egregious profits reaching as high as 40%,” according to the letter, issued Thursday, which asks FTC Chair Lina Khan to investigate for potential profiteering and “foul play.”

Trapper Gus wrote:https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/13/deflation-heres-where-prices-fell-in-february-2024-in-one-chart.html

LOS ANGELES (AP) — More homeowners eager to sell their home are lowering their initial asking price in a bid to entice prospective buyers as the spring homebuying season gets going.

Some 14.6% of U.S. homes listed for sale last month had their price lowered, according to Realtor.com. That’s up from 13.2% a year earlier, the first annual increase since May. In January, the percentage of homes on the market with price reductions was 14.7%.

“Sellers are cutting prices, but it just means we’re seeing smaller price gains than we would otherwise have seen,” said Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com.