Inflation has hit a lot of people’s pockets in different ways, but it turns out more people are buying groceries than ever before. Grocery store spending increased 8% year over year. It appears that people are still out spending at a strong rate. Even restaurant sales increased by 1.4% from September to October. Grocery inflation has remained high but did in fact decline in October compared with September.
The Census Bureau also reported that people are spending a great amount on vehicles, health and personal care items, and on furniture for their homes but saw a decline in sales of electronics and appliances. What’s interesting is that The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Center for Microeconomic data shared that the national credit card debt number is the highest it has been in over twenty years, this means people are borrowing money at high rates and levels not seen in a very long time. It will be interesting to see how everything shakes out with all these economic factors as we grasp to understand if we truly are in a recession or not.
About The Author: Jeff Dervech
Jeff Dervech is a Tampa local commercial real estate agent, specializing in the arena of retail strip center and shopping centers.
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