ABC recently unveiled the launch of its new Price Tracker. This action follows the most recent surge in inflation, which has stoked fears nationwide about skyrocketing costs for families. Our monthly tracker includes current prices for key commodities and services across the 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. It provides smart consumers with the ability to understand what’s going on in today’s market.
CPI inflation has been ticking up more significantly in recent months, resuscitating price anxieties that first burst onto the scene during COVID. The impact of this double-digit inflation goes beyond rising gas prices and stretches to every household necessity, food, energy, and housing. Eggs and beef have especially skyrocketed in price, raising the national grocery bill average considerably. On top of that, electricity prices have gone up exorbitantly, with average monthly electric bills for residential customers now around $165.
Gasoline prices have been a powerful story in the inflation narrative. Nationally, the average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline is $3.18. That’s an increase of 18% from five years ago. These increasing fuel costs add even greater pressure onto household budgets and serve as a reminder that inflation is still very much with us.
An updated Price Tracker gives a detailed picture of price differences by state and locality. One form of regional price discrimination can be blamed for consumers in the Midwest paying much less for a bag of potato chips. This regional difference highlights the powerful, often overlooked role that local markets can have in shaping consumer costs.
Housing prices haven’t let up either, and the differences between cities could not be more clear. Housing costs in San Francisco and New York City get far, far outside the realm of affordability in Cleveland, OH. This growing chasm illustrates the deepening economic divides that plague our nation. The average cost of a single-family residence in the United States now stands at over $368,000. That’s a truly impressive gain of nearly 13% just in the last five years alone. In fact, over the last ten years it’s grown by a truly impressive 38%!
We understand that inflation is hitting hard across all sectors right now. To combat this, ABC has developed the Price Tracker to arm consumers with the right information. Famed for its robust methodology, the Price Tracker offers fascinating predicaments into pricing trends. It’s a simple but effective tool that empowers people to make informed decisions in the face of increasing costs.
