This is a left wing government on a left wing national broadcaster admitting that cost of living pressures are tied to government infrastructure spending.
If they don't bring down inflation they're not getting re elected, this is the political cycle we are now in, it's just that different nations are at different stages of realising this.

Meanwhile in America, Florida considering using its budget surplus to pay for Trump's legal bills.

www.meidastouch.com/news/floridas-cfo-floats-plan-that-could-potentially-help-with-trumps-legal-costs-using-state-funds-

This thread is about inflation, nor Trump.

Biden also needs to.stop spending money or he's going to push inflation higher.

You mean like spending money on the Florida disaster that they did not spend their own money on, so they can now discuss spending it on Trump instead?

Inflation is stable in the US, and half of what it is in Australia, so not sure why you all keep blaming Biden for your own problems with it.  If anything Biden should manage your fiscal policy.  

Now for something that will have a real impact on inflation, Taliban cut opium production by 95%. This will drive prices of painkillers sky high driving up healthcare costs worldwide. They supplied 70% of opium worldwide, and 85% pharmaceutical opium. Means most opium now has to come for Southeast Asia, or the US needs to make another deal with the Taliban to increase production again.

Opium is how get morphine though, and all modern painkillers are derivatives of morphine. Also still use as a secondary anaesthetic. Seeing 75% of the world supply suddenly vanish means prices should be skyrocketing and shortages may be coming to countries with price controls via socialized medicine.

Another thing being talked about is snow hitting the US south due to el nino. These states spend almost none of their own money to prepare for disasters, so once this snow hits, feds will have to spend billions in disaster relief to bail them out as all will claim they lack funds to deal with the disasters, while then claiming budget surpluses.

Sure there will be more excuses how federal spending in this situation is anti-inflation because we all know spending in red states is good for the economy and only spending on blue states adds to the deficit and causes inflation.

A well timed interest rate increase just past for Aussies today. A further 0.25%.

Nov 5, 2023 12:03:13 GMT c said:

You mean like spending money on the Florida disaster that they did not spend their own money on, so they can now discuss spending it on Trump instead?

Inflation is stable in the US, and half of what it is in Australia, so not sure why you all keep blaming Biden for your own problems with it.  If anything Biden should manage your fiscal policy.  

Come talk to me about stability in inflation when prices come down.

Why would they come down? The sole goal of a corporation is to maximize profit. It would be against their interest not to raise prices as much as they can during inflationary periods, then retain the prices after. It is just good business.

Nov 7, 2023 11:50:34 GMT c said:

Why would they come down? The sole goal of a corporation is to maximize profit. It would be against their interest not to raise prices as much as they can during inflationary periods, then retain the prices after. It is just good business.

After however many pages of this thread you still don't understand what inflation is...

Whatever the reason inflation causes prices to rise as long as people are able to keep paying them.
When people can no longer pay those prices, demand and prices go down.

Inflation dropped this year from last, how many consumer goods also dropped?

Nov 7, 2023 14:39:54 GMT c said:

Inflation dropped this year from last, how many consumer goods also dropped?

That just means the prices would grow slower, not go down.

Credit card balances, which in the second quarter surpassed the trillion-dollar mark for the first time, continued to grow at historic rates. Balances totaled $1.08 trillion last quarter, increasing $48 billion from the quarter before and jumping by a record $148 billion from the third quarter of last year.

www.cnn.com/2023/11/07/economy/household-debt-credit-card-delinquencies-q3/index.html

The number of 401(k) plan participants taking hardship distributions increased by 13% between the second and third quarters, according to an analysis by Bank of America of its clients’ employee benefit programs

www.cnn.com/2023/11/07/economy/americans-401k-plans-bill-payments/index.html

This all gonna boom with the student loan repayments starting.

But this is what to expect with rising inequality. More people get left behind and are needing outside cash to survive.

Sure we will hear more about how the growing poor need to be lectured about their spending habits in the near future.

Nov 7, 2023 14:01:12 GMT iNCY said:

Nov 7, 2023 11:50:34 GMT c said:

Why would they come down? The sole goal of a corporation is to maximize profit. It would be against their interest not to raise prices as much as they can during inflationary periods, then retain the prices after. It is just good business.

After however many pages of this thread you still don't understand what inflation is...

Whatever the reason inflation causes prices to rise as long as people are able to keep paying them.
When people can no longer pay those prices, demand and prices go down.

Inflation is an increase in the prices of goods and services over time due to an imbalance between demand and supply.

That's the novice nuts and bolts of it.

I kind of sit on the fence of reality and conspiracy in believing a major component of inflation in at least this country is being driven by the people benefiting the most - the big retailers. By manufacturing a sense of urgency (ie; a deliberate lack of availability of product) it allows them to push price increases. It then sets the price of the market.

I had a fruit grower share some insight a few years ago. As a tomato growers he asked why I thought the price of tomatoes were so high. Towing the company line, I suggested a lack of product.

NAH-NAH! He explained. There was product available. The retailers were simply buying less and calling it an availability issue and charging more. Creating a sense of urgency in the market. Do this several tens of thousands times over and here we are...

They never lied, the product wasn't available... in there warehouses.

Nov 7, 2023 19:05:35 GMT NATH45 said:

Nov 7, 2023 14:01:12 GMT iNCY said:

After however many pages of this thread you still don't understand what inflation is...

Whatever the reason inflation causes prices to rise as long as people are able to keep paying them.
When people can no longer pay those prices, demand and prices go down.

Inflation is an increase in the prices of goods and services over time due to an imbalance between demand and supply.

That's the novice nuts and bolts of it.

I kind of sit on the fence of reality and conspiracy in believing a major component of inflation in at least this country is being driven by the people benefiting the most - the big retailers. By manufacturing a sense of urgency (ie; a deliberate lack of availability of product) it allows them to push price increases. It then sets the price of the market.

I had a fruit grower share some insight a few years ago. As a tomato growers he asked why I thought the price of tomatoes were so high. Towing the company line, I suggested a lack of product.

NAH-NAH! He explained. There was product available. The retailers were simply buying less and calling it an availability issue and charging more. Creating a sense of urgency in the market. Do this several tens of thousands times over and here we are...

They never lied, the product wasn't available... in there warehouses.

100%

Seriously I couldn't like this post more.  :jumpjacks:

I'm no conspiracy theorist, BUT I now have zero doubt that the manufacturers are creating scarcity so they can drive prices up. I have an email I sent to site & the client not 3 weeks ago in which I say exactly this. The first year, I was like 'Okay, COVID: lack or resources (labor & materials). Second year okay we're catching up after COVID, but now we're heading into year 4 of this BS. Don't tell me you don't have enough workers or raw materials.  If so your manager(s) and your purchaser(s) should be fired. 

In the US and Canada there was a shortage of ADHD meds. Manufacturers said there was no way they would increase output for two years now. House GOP announced an investigation and all but one major manufacturer within 6 hours announced they would increase production.

For COVID a lot of groups straight out told investors that it was a good time to aggressively raise prices. Fiscal policy got blamed, but the reason prices went up was simply a choice of many companies to increase their profits since the year prior they took a hit.  And once prices are raised they are not lowered.  

So long as companies expect 30% growth year after year, prices will keep rising as that is the only way to keep up that level of unsustainable growth that investors now demand.  

I've seen prices go up 400% in some cases.

I don't want to tell you about the grocery prices here. You'd cry. It's worse in isolated communities.

EDIT: Or utilities.

But think of those poor execs who just need their little yacht to take them to the big yacht. Surely you can pay a little more for them not to have to take a helicopter to their yacht like a merely well off person does.

I've seen a lot of deceptive tactics over the last few years, while still in the supermarket game.

My favourite, and I can't remember the exact price, was the price of a 2lt Coca Cola.

It was on a 'price drop' price at $2 for years. They put it up to $4. Then 2 weeks later, put it back on 'price drop' at $3.

The promotional material said " Now $3. Save $1. Was $4. "

I raised this sort of shenanigans to my higher ups, who said.. 14 days was all they needed in the market to do this.

I understand " inflation " but don't be a smartass about it.

At the major banking and investing summit in Hong Kong major red flags were raised about the shadow banking sector. Currently half of all global finance assets exist outside of the traditional banking and finance sector, and thus are not regulated.

Very likely will be what causes the next crash.


www.imf.org/en/Publications/fandd/issues/Series/Back-to-Basics/Shadow-Banks

Nov 7, 2023 19:05:35 GMT NATH45 said:

Nov 7, 2023 14:01:12 GMT iNCY said:

After however many pages of this thread you still don't understand what inflation is...

Whatever the reason inflation causes prices to rise as long as people are able to keep paying them.
When people can no longer pay those prices, demand and prices go down.

Inflation is an increase in the prices of goods and services over time due to an imbalance between demand and supply.

That's the novice nuts and bolts of it.

I kind of sit on the fence of reality and conspiracy in believing a major component of inflation in at least this country is being driven by the people benefiting the most - the big retailers. By manufacturing a sense of urgency (ie; a deliberate lack of availability of product) it allows them to push price increases. It then sets the price of the market.

I had a fruit grower share some insight a few years ago. As a tomato growers he asked why I thought the price of tomatoes were so high. Towing the company line, I suggested a lack of product.

NAH-NAH! He explained. There was product available. The retailers were simply buying less and calling it an availability issue and charging more. Creating a sense of urgency in the market. Do this several tens of thousands times over and here we are...

They never lied, the product wasn't available... in there warehouses.

That is not actually correct and I am not trying to be an asshole but the definition does matter.
You can have two different types of inflation.
There is PUSH inflation where costs and demand drive up prices.
Also as c iron maiden, and you mention there is PULL inflation, where it is the raising of prices driving up the costs.
Not getting into the argument of why...

The perverse part is that it doesn't actually matter which it is.
If prices rise as they have and spending doesn't decrease as a result, it is a sign that there is too much money in the economy.
The problem is that this money was circulating around the economy and nobody really understood how much it was distorting the economy.
As prices rise, what should happen is people cut  back on their spending.....

This isn't happening, people are not reducing their spending, if they did we would see collapsing demand.
The really shitty things about how the economy works is that the Fed Reserve only has one toll which is interest rates, which is like driving a car but having no steering wheel and only a handbrake.
When the rates rise, it is a very small overall percentage of the economy that is affected, ie. those who are most leveraged.
So it is a large affect on a small percentage, but that is the only control we have...

The big risk is that we pull the handbrake and the wheels lock up and we slide straight into recession.
If you look at new build approvals across the Western World and capital investment, it looks like this might be already be happening...

I am really not trying to be an asshole, I am just talking about what makes all this tick.

There is growing criticism of the US Treasury department and their handling of debt during the pandemic.
When 30Y treasury bonds could be secured for next to nothing, they determined to scrimp and take short term bonds that were cheaper for 1,2, 5 and 10 years.
The issue now is the number of bonds expiring and needing to be reissued at near 5% rates.

The same people criticising them said they should not take 30 year ones because the lower ones would better promote economic stimulus.

Nov 13, 2023 15:26:30 GMT c said:

The same people criticising them said they should not take 30 year ones because the lower ones would better promote economic stimulus.

No... The interest rate has nothing to do with the purpose of the spending stimulating or otherwise

By buying short term it would send a message that rates would be stable. If they went all in on 30 years it would have sent a message that rates would be rising. And when rates are rising economic stimulus falls.

Nov 14, 2023 4:43:54 GMT c said:

By buying short term it would send a message that rates would be stable. If they went all in on 30 years it would have sent a message that rates would be rising. And when rates are rising economic stimulus falls.

Generally policy has always been to buy a spread, they didn't buy short to send a message... Rates rising caught everyone by surprise.
Hence the problem of maturing bonds needing refinance at 5%
Or do you take the 30Y? Maybe bond rates will be worse in 12 months, that is the mess.

This is kind of a business type post and I figured it fit best in this thread.

Our government has passed a law that allows businesses to charge credit card charges back to the customer. Some are even able to add percentages to it. Now apparently, when it passed only 1 in 5 businesses were going to do it, but I believe we are now up to 2 in 5. For instance had we paid via credit card for our attic insultation, he was going to hit us with a 3% service fee so we paid via etransfer. My mom fought our utility company on hitting us with charges for paying our bills monthly automatically off our credit card and even today I went to buy something for work on my company P Card and the vendor said it would be a 5% service charge to do so. Of course Quebec is exempt.

I get as a business owner that you might want to recoup those costs, however my issue is I believe this was first explored because these vendors didn't want to raise their prices. Now they have raised their prices AND are charging you a service fee. And some are even inflating that fee. 

For any of you who run/manage or own businesses, if a customer buys with credit card do you charge those fees back to the customer or do you simply add it to your cost of business?

Nov 28, 2023 21:31:08 GMT iron maiden said:

This is kind of a business type post and I figured it fit best in this thread.

Our government has passed a law that allows businesses to charge credit card charges back to the customer. Some are even able to add percentages to it. Now apparently, when it passed only 1 in 5 businesses were going to do it, but I believe we are now up to 2 in 5. For instance had we paid via credit card for our attic insultation, he was going to hit us with a 3% service fee so we paid via etransfer. My mom fought our utility company on hitting us with charges for paying our bills monthly automatically off our credit card and even today I went to buy something for work on my company P Card and the vendor said it would be a 5% service charge to do so. Of course Quebec is exempt.

I get as a business owner that you might want to recoup those costs, however my issue is I believe this was first explored because these vendors didn't want to raise their prices. Now they have raised their prices AND are charging you a service fee. And some are even inflating that fee. 

For any of you who run/manage or own businesses, if a customer buys with credit card do you charge those fees back to the customer or do you simply add it to your cost of business?

In Australia it's common to pay a surcharge for credit cards, not everywhere but most small businesses do.
Large companies are able to negotiate good rates so they don't pass them on.

Normally it's like 1.5% for Visa or Mastercard
1.8 to 2.5% for Amex

I get it

Speaking of raising prices, administration in the US now investigating why companies that raised their prices due to supply chain shortages have not lowered them under price gouging laws. Likely in a second Biden term there will be a push for windfall taxes under companies with artificially inflated prices.

Antitrust moving through for several industries as well, such as meatpacking for collusion during the epidemic.  

///

Looking like Biden will be closing loopholes on using welfare cash for non-welfare issues, such as church programs or non-welfare state programs.  It will also define needy as 200% under the federal poverty line so college stadiums and private school vouchers to wealthy parents cannot come from these funds.

Biden will also be pushing again for a 20% min tax on full income realized or not.