Davin News Server

On Fri, 3 Oct 2025 13:49:29 -0500, AlleyCat <katt@gmail.com> wrote:

>
>Do you in any way whatsoever feel anything from the Schumer Shutdown? The government is so bloated and ineffective, you don't even 
>notice when it's not working!
>
>Inflation Cooled Again Last Month As Grocery And Gas Prices Fell, Few Signs Of Tariff Impact - MSN
>
>Grocery prices:	down
>Gas prices:		down
>Clothing prices:	down
>New Car prices:	steady
>
>
>Inflation cooled for the third straight month in April even after some of President Donald Trump's tariffs took effect, though 
>economists and many business owners expect inflation will climb in the coming months.
>
>Grocery prices dipped 0.4%, pulled downward in part by a big 12.7% fall in the price of eggs. It was the BIGGEST DECLINE IN FOOD 
>COSTS AT HOME since September 2020, the government said.
>
>The report suggests the TARIFFS HAVEN'T YET IMPACTED THE PRICES of many items. Clothing costs fell 0.2% from March to April, while 
>new car prices were unchanged.
>
>Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices were also muted, rising 2.8% in April compared with a year ago, the 
>same as in March. On a monthly basis, they increased a mild 0.2%. Economists watch core prices because they typically provide a 
>better read on where prices are headed.
>
>Only some early tariffs imposed by Trump were in effect in April, including 25% duties on steel and aluminum and 25% on some 
>imports from Canada and Mexico. Trump's initial 20% import taxes on goods from China were also in place. The steel and aluminum 
>duties will take time to affect consumer products, such as cars, and may not affect retail prices for months.
>
>Trump announced a universal 10% tariff that took effect April 5. His huge 145% import taxes on Chinese goods were reduced to 30% in 
>a deal announced Monday.
>
>Still, economists say average tariffs are now at about 18%, roughly six times higher than before Trump took office and the highest 
>in about 90 years.
>
>Items that were already in transit when the tariffs were imposed won't have to pay the duties, while many companies have built a 
>stockpile of goods and could hold off on price hikes in hopes that tariffs will ultimately be reduced.
>
>Still, some companies have raised prices and others have said they plan to do so as a result of the duties. Mattel Inc., the maker 
>of Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels cars, said earlier this month it would have to raise prices on some products to offset tariffs. The 
>company makes 40% of its products in China.
>
>Tool maker Stanley Black and Decker said it raised prices in April and plans to do so again in the July-September quarter because 
>of higher tariffs. And executives at Procter and Gamble, the consumer products giant that makes household name brands such as Crest 
>toothpaste, Tide detergent, and Charmin toilet paper said last month it will likely have to pass on higher prices to consumers as 
>soon as July.
>
>Consumer prices cooled noticeably in February and March, prompting Trump to claim repeatedly on social media that there is "NO 
>INFLATION." Inflation has fallen to nearly the 2% target set by the Federal Reserve, the agency charged with fighting higher 
>prices.
>
>The smaller import taxes on Chinese goods will limit the damage to the U.S. economy, but combined with all the other tariffs, 
>economists forecast they will still slow growth this year and worsen inflation.
>
>The Yale Budget Lab, for example, estimates the tariffs will lift prices 1.7% and cost the average household about $2,800 this 
>year.
>
>And while Trump may tout his trade deals - such as the one with the United Kingdom reached last week - he has also said "tariffs is 
>the most beautiful word" in the dictionary, and is counting on revenue from duties to narrow the budget deficit, suggesting tariffs 
>will likely remain high.
>
>The tariffs have also put the Federal Reserve in an exceedingly difficult spot, as Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged in a news 
>conference last week. Powell said the duties have raised the risk of both higher inflation and higher unemployment, two challenges 
>that rarely occur simultaneously. If unemployment rose, the Fed would typically cut rates to boost the economy, while if inflation 
>worsened, the central bank would usually raise rates or leave them elevated.
>

Don't forget the stock market is at record highs.