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MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle called upon the president of Chicago’s Federal Reserve to tell viewers that they are economically far better off than they think. "We need an economic explainer," the MSNBC host said. "People are confused, they’re exhausted, but they’re also doing quite well." Ruhle, who hosts MSNBC’s "The Eleventh Hour," had been discussing a recent Federal Reserve report that "shows people are still struggling to cover day-to-day expenses, even as inflation has slowed." She noted how some major brands are responding by enticing consumers with slashed prices, "Target says it is cutting prices on 5,000 essential items, things...

An independent group of McDonald's franchise owners have spoken out about the the chain's $5 meal bundle planned for this summer. The US's biggest fast food chain is trying to lure back customers fed up with its price hikes. Customers will get a total of four items - either a McDouble or McChicken sandwich, small fries, small soft drink and four McNuggets - for $5. 'The fact remains that in order to provide the consumer with more affordable options, they must be affordable for the owner/operators. 'McDonald's vast resources and financial investment are essential to any sustainable affordable strategy,' the...

The United States has long had the world’s biggest defense budget, with spending this year set to approach $900 billion. Yet this spending is rapidly being eclipsed by the fastest-growing portion of federal outflows: interest payments on the national debt. For the first seven months of fiscal year 2024, which began last October, net interest payments totaled $514 billion, outpacing defense by $20 billion. Budget analysts think that trend will continue, making 2024 the first year ever that the United States will spend more on interest payments than on national defense. ... Just two years ago, interest payments were the...

A cruise line has offered the adventure of a lifetime for retirees to explore the world in luxury and give them a chance to beat inflation. Villa Vie Residences has launched their Endless Horizons program, which allows passengers to set sail on the Villa Vie Odyssey ship and take off on a seven-continent adventure on May 30. The luxury cruise liner requires a one time payment of $299,999 for a single room and $499,999 for a double occupancy cabin. 'One aspect most people nearing retirement age are concerned about is ongoing living expenses and the possibility of outliving their savings,'...

It's crazy to think how much better we had it just five short years ago. You could get a $1.29 McChicken, a $1.69 5-layer burrito from Taco Bell, 8 nuggets at Chick-fil-A for $3.05. We had it made! Since 2019, however, those prices have essentially doubled, and that's not only outrageous, it's depressing. Let's check on the numbers, shall we? So here's what inflation looked like overall during that period: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' inflation calculator, prices in general went up by around 21.5% between December 2019 (prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic...

“Corporate price gouging” is the Biden administration’s latest narrative to displace the responsibility of soaring costs. President Joe Biden, who falsely claimed twice in two weeks that inflation was at nine percent when he assumed office, is transitioning to another tack, albeit a strategy he has used before. “President Biden’s top economic priorities are fighting inflation and lowering costs for the American people,” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates claimed. “Standing up to corporate price gouging is at the core of that fight.”

Well, we’ve pinpointed the big, ugly disconnect in the Biden economy, and it’s a massive YIKES. While Team Biden clumsily tries to sell us on the idea that the economy is fantastic and we’re better off than ever, the grim reality just got blasted out for all to see in one of the most alarming graphs ever. It shows that since Biden took office, household net worth has plummeted, sharply contrasting the financial stability many enjoyed under President Trump. This graph once again proves that what we see firsthand everyday. The truth always “trumps” the Biden smokescreens and spin. Inflation...

An economist offered an explanation for a paradox that has emerged in recent data showing that spending has remained robust even as consumers report feeling pessimistic. Joanne Hsu, who is the director of the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey, told CNBC on Friday that she thinks Americans have abandoned plans to save money as they see their financial goals look less attainable and are spending money instead. “This positive spending is not a reflection of some sort of internalized secret sense of confidence that consumers have,” he explained. “And instead my interpretation is that consumers see that a lot...

Grocery prices fell on the whole in April for the first time in 12 months, according to data released Wednesday by the Labor Department.

On Friday’s broadcast of Bloomberg’s “Surveillance,” Bloomberg columnist, economist, President of Queens’ College, Allianz Chief Economic Adviser, and former Obama Global Development Council Chair Dr. Mohamed El-Erian stated that the “sustainable energy” transition has helped create “a world that’s subject to higher inflation” than the world we had before.

I never imagined that we would ever see a time when it takes $177,798 for a family of four to live comfortably in the United States. Unfortunately, that day has arrived. Our leaders have been pursuing highly inflationary policies for many years, and now we have reached a point where inflation is wildly out of control. In fact, the latest wholesale inflation figure that was released on Tuesday came in much higher than expected. Sadly, this is just the beginning and we are in far more trouble than most people realize.According to an incredibly shocking new study, most Americans do...

On Wednesday, the country hit a sad milestone: Inflation under President Biden hit 20 percent. The dollar’s value has plummeted under his watch. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also confirmed that the consumer price index is resurgent and growing faster than average wages. Combined with weak GDP growth, this data shows the U.S. economy is reentering stagflation. Historic inflation is causing declining living standards and a cost-of-living crisis. Under Biden’s presidency, grocery prices have increased by nearly one-third and gas has risen by 50 percent. It feels like every daily convenience — from a turkey sandwich to some handyman help...

The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.3 percent in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, after rising 0.4 percent in March, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 3.4 percent before seasonal adjustment. Advertisement The index for shelter rose in April, as did the index for gasoline. Combined, these two indexes contributed over seventy percent of the monthly increase in the index for all items. The energy index rose 1.1 percent over the month. The food index was unchanged in April. The food at home...

Dozens of Democratic lawmakers signed a letter to President Biden, pleading with him to act on high grocery prices that have been slow to fall as inflation has come down. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., led the letter Monday morning, calling on Biden to "exercise your executive authority to take additional action to address rising food prices without congressional action." The letter amassed 40 Democratic signatories between the House and Senate, including senators Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and representatives Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., among others. The lawmakers acknowledged "Americans are facing sky-high...

CLAIM: President Joe Biden claimed during an interview with Yahoo Finance that inflation was nine percent when he took office in January 2021. VERDICT: FALSE. A report from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation rate was at 1.4 percent in January 2021, when Biden came into office.

Inflation at the wholesale level rose much more than expected in April, the latest sign that price pressures within the economy remain elevated and difficult to tame. The Labor Department said Tuesday that its producer price index, which measures inflation at the wholesale level before it reaches consumers, rose 0.5% in April from the previous month. On an annual basis, prices remain up 2.2% — the highest level since April 2023. While the monthly gain is notably higher than the 0.2% increase forecast by LSEG economists, the headline figure is in line with expectations.

President Joe Biden’s policy of mass migration is forcing up housing inflation, so pushing up interest rates and mortgage rates, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Housing prices should have dropped amid the recent supply of new apartments and homes, but have “not behaved the way we thought it would,” said Austan Goolsbee, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.. “I still think it will, but if it doesn’t, we’re going to have a hard time” bringing inflation back down to the target of 2 percent, Goolsbee told the Journal for a May 11 article.

This week in an interview with CNN's Erin Burnett, President Biden dismissed the 30% rise in food prices since he took office, saying "people can afford it. Thanks to Bidenomics, they have the money to spend. I've personally canceled billions of dollars in student debt. We're putting newly arrived immigrants up in hotels and feeding them. We're subsidizing electric vehicles so drivers don't have to pay high gas prices. Most of us have credit cards, savings, or EBTs. Many of our cities have effectively legalized shoplifting items of less than a thousand dollars. There's no crisis. The Republicans are gas-lighting...

President Biden claimed on Wednesday that inflation was at 9% when he entered the White House in January 2021, when, in fact, the consumer price index (CPI) was at a mere 1.4% at the time. "No president has had the run we’ve had in terms of creating jobs and bringing down inflation," Biden told CNN's Erin Burnett in an interview. "It was 9% when I came to office – 9%." It’s a notion Biden has alluded to before. In April, the president said: "Look, we have dramatically reduced inflation from 9% down to close to 3%. We’re in a situation...

Breitbart economics editor John Carney said Wednesday on Fox Business Network’s “Kudlow” that “overspending by the federal government” under the Biden administration caused inflation, not tariffs implemented by former President Donald Trump. Kudlow said, “Because Trump might raise tariffs or use tariffs as a tool to enforce reciprocity, they’re all up in arms saying tariffs will cause inflation but you say they will not?” Carney said, “They didn’t cause inflation. They screamed about inflation when Trump was president last time around and we didn’t see it. It just didn’t happen. I tracked month after month these numbers, everything you could...