Posted on 03/16/2012 8:57:33 AM PDT by tobyhill
U.S. consumer prices rose by the most in 10 months in February as the cost of gasoline spiked, a government report showed on Friday, but there was little sign that underlying inflation pressures were building up.
The Labor Department said its Consumer Price Index increased 0.4 percent after advancing 0.2 percent in January. That was in line with economists' expectations. Gasoline accounted for more than 80 percent of the rise in consumer prices last month, the department said.
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
I’m just making fun of some of our local econ “experts.”
—How often do you buy a home, and even if you buy one a day, why should I care? —
I think that’s the argument and why they use the rent equivalent. Meanwhile, I rented from 1998 through 2007, the time of the entire runup, yet my rent wend DOWN. That was not really reflective of the housing market.
The CPI should reflect, for any given day, what it would cost to put a roof over your head that day, buy a meal that day, a car, clothing, the basics. That day.
I know. I have never understood why the Government thinks food and gas doesn’t belong in the inflationary index?
I ran to thee store the other day to get some sugar for my ice tea and I couldn’t believe how much even the store brand increased.
They will not just have to rise more, they will have to rise faster to get near 6%.
Not that NObama isn’t capable of it...
Some people think otherwise.
LIES FROM DAMNED LIARS!
LLS
Not sure what you’re referring to. My point was to illustrate (at least one way) how the CPI numbers are calculated to hide the true rate of inflation.
Don’t know what ‘gold blogs’ are. Does that impact how the BLS figures inflation?
And you did, incorrectly . . . and most of the folks who make that error usually are trying to sell me gold.
Nope, not a gold blogger.
So the BLS is on the level with how they calculate inflation?
Nobody is talking about how the weaker dollar, fueled by the government spending and borrowing binge, is causing our country to pay more for gas. We have to bid higher in the world market when our dollar is toothless, even for oil produced in our own country. That is why we are exporting more oil. Higher oil prices are being caused by more than just uncertainty over Iran, government restricted domestic production and speculator activity.
Obama and the Democrat gang of thieves need to have their “sign of blame” hung around their necks for this problem so everybody understands.
5%, ha ha.
I feel (in the wallet) that inflation is really 7-9%.
Huh? I'm not sure how you made that jump. I merely pointed out that you are mistaken.
“we know it’s well over 10% higher for gas and food just this last month.”
Your eyes are lying to you. Don’t you understand that Apple, Inc. is over $600?? You can eat an iPad, right?
DO YOU NOT BELIEVE IN THE GLORY OF OBAMA, HERETIC?
“Huh? I’m not sure how you made that jump. I merely pointed out that you are mistaken.”
Normally when someone says another is incorrect, it implies that person knows, or may know, what is correct; that is how I made that ‘jump’.
My lunchtime is about over so I was just wondering if you have knowledge of how the BLS actually calculates inflation and if it’s done in a way that reflects the true measure of rising/falling prices. Thanks.
I saw a news report the other day that most staples at the grocery store are up roughly 9% THIS YEAR!
Of course, food and energy prices are not factored into the government inflation computations. What is holding those numbers down (and I’ve actually heard a government shill on Fox News claim this is a good thing) is that housing prices are way down, as are consumer electronic prices. I found myself shouting at the TV, “HOW MANY HOUSES OR BIG SCREEN TVS DO YOU BUY EVERY WEEK?!?!?!?!?!?!”
The “stimulus” and continual “monetary easing” are doing nothing but destroying the value of our money and keeping stock prices artificially high... I’m afraid we’re in for another “stock bubble,” even worse than what we saw in 2008, and I’ve just barely recovered my losses from that...
Anybody else notice that when you lose 50% of your investments, they need to increase in value by 100% just to get you back to “even?”
Just damn...
Mark
...gas prices didn't SPIKE until the last week in February. A gas price spike wouldn't have had time to effect all of February. The chart shows a rise over all of 2012, just to look at a time frame, so if gas prices are now being deemed to be the cause of a monthly Consumer Price Index, it should have had the exact same effect in the previous month.
The biggest change regarding global oil supply and demand issues in recent months and days is (a) hightened security questions vis-vis-Iran regarding the Persion Gulf, (b) decreased global market availability of Iranian refined oil products, and (c)lack of any major new boost to global oil production or refined output - in a market with a mere 2.5million barrels between global supply and demand.
Though global demand is temporarily stable, with Europe still in recession and China reigning in its growth, so is supply currently and the security issues are stressing against the small cushion between supply and demand.
As long as the Iranian security issues continue, so will security demands on oil prices, unless the Saudis decide to, or a collection of interests find a way to, generously boost supplies.
Obama and Cameron are discussing coordinated releases of I.S. and U.K. oil reserves now, in light of current prices. It’s the wrong reason - prices, and the wrong time. But, the time for that UK./U.S. joint action may come if Israel decides to take-out Iran’s nuclear facilities. Then, the purpose of the reserves - “crisis disruption of oil supplies”, would be served.
Meanwhile, if you and your neighbors want your regions gas prices to go down, drive less. Supply and demand works.
Can you imagine some of these people 12 dollars an hour or making 22k or so a year?
They are all but dead.
The BLS calculates inflation based on a basket of goods. However beef is beef and chicken is chicken. The substitution effect, to which you refer, doesn’t come into play.
[groan]
Do you understand that you are posting on a thread where the government computed energy prices into inflation?
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