Consumers have been waiting for lower prices for what seems like forever. And now costs are finally going down. (Some of them, at least.)
After a years-long run up in prices that’s caused many to pull back on spending, things are finally beginning to get cheaper.
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Ford recently marked down its electric Mustang Mach-E by 17 percent. Target is slashing prices on 5,000 items, including Persil laundry detergent by 5 percent, Clorox wipes by 14 percent and Purina One cat food by 17 percent. And at Walgreens, swim goggles and Squishmallows are discounted by as much as 40 percent.
Those markdowns, and the consumer spending slowdown that prompted them, mark a turning point in the post-lockdown economy, after the sharpest surge in inflation in decades.
New inflation data on Wednesday, the second day of a Federal Reserve Board meeting that starts Tuesday, will offer yet another snapshot of just how much prices have cooled. Although the central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady — as it has done since last summer — many are watching to see whether the Fed will begin cutting borrowing costs later this year or keep pressure on the economy in its fight against inflation.
