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July’s CPI Report Shows US Inflation Cooling — Critics Say ‘US Government’s Formula Understates the Actual Rise in Prices’

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After last June’s inflation report published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) reflected a 9.1% year-over-year increase, July’s CPI data has come in lower with a year-over-year increase of 8.5%. Economists polled by media publications estimated that July’s CPI data would print 8.7%, however, July’s core CPI, the government’s broadest measure of inflation, remained the same as June.

CPI Report Shows Inflation in the US May Have Peaked, Stocks, Cryptos, and Precious Metals Jump Higher

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, Nasdaq, S&P 500, and NYSE indexes all jumped significantly higher in value after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published July’s inflation report. Additionally, precious metals and cryptocurrencies saw a rise on Wednesday as well, as bitcoin (BTC) jumped over 4% higher, gold increased by 0.35%, and silver jumped 1.43% in value against the U.S. dollar.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for July 2022 said: “The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) was unchanged in July on a seasonally adjusted basis after rising 1.3 percent in June. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 8.5 percent before seasonal adjustment.” The inflation report adds:

The gasoline index fell 7.7 percent in July and offset increases in the food and shelter indexes, resulting in the all items index being unchanged over the month.

Bankrate’s chief financial analyst Greg McBride told Yahoo Finance reporter Alexandra Semenova that the gas price drop was good for the economy, but it doesn’t fix inflationary pressures. “The drop in gasoline prices has been very welcome, but that doesn’t solve the inflation problem,” McBride said. “Consumers are getting a break at the gas pump, but not at the grocery store.” Moreover, many people have issues with the way the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates CPI.

Truflation CEO Says True Inflation Is Running at 9.6% Today, Schiffgold Author Claims Government Formula Understates Real Inflation Numbers

Data from shadowstats.com’s alternative inflation charts show inflation is much higher than the reported numbers published by the U.S. government. The CEO of Truflation, Stefan Rust, says the country’s inflation figures are not accurate and he believes true inflation is running at 9.6% today.

The company’s Truflation Index indicates that at the time of writing, the rate is 9.61%, which is still down from the 10.5% the Truflation Index recorded in July. Further, it is still down from the 11.4% annual peak the Truflation Index recorded in March.

“First, it was transitory. Next, it was manageable. Now, it’s a problem the US is attempting to tackle with a whole new piece of legislation as inflation continues to run at scorching 40-year highs,” Rust said in emailed comments sent to Bitcoin.com News. “The latest data released today provides some welcome relief, with growth in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) slowing to 8.5% in the year to July thanks largely to falling fuel prices. Notably, though, month on month prices remained the same as increases in rent and food costs — which have the largest impact on poorer citizens — offset declining prices at the pump.” Rust continued:

This means Americans are still struggling to make ends meet as they watch the value of their money erode at over 8% per year. As bad as all this seems, however, the true inflation picture differs from the above. Today, the Truflation index is showing that US inflation is running at 9.6%. This is down from 10.5% in July, and an annual peak of 11.4% in March, reflecting the same downward trend that the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS) figures suggest. However, it remains over 100 basis points higher than these official figures.

Schiffgold.com’s Michael Maharrey said on Wednesday that the latest CPI data was not the greatest and the government formula used to tally the numbers is understated. Maharrey and the economists at Peter Schiff’s blog believe the CPI is much higher. “It wasn’t all good news,” Maharrey stressed. “Food prices continued to skyrocket, rising 1.1% from June. Rents also rose.”

“And as I mention every time I talk about CPI, it’s even worse than these numbers suggest. This CPI uses a government formula that understates the actual rise in prices,” Maharrey added. “Based on the CPI formula used in the 1970s, CPI remains in the 17% range — a historically high number.”

U.S. president Joe Biden discussed the CPI data as well and remarked that new laws and semiconductors manufacturing based in America boosted the country’s economic activity. “Last year, one-third of core inflation was due to high prices for automobiles because of the shortage of semiconductors,” Biden said on Wednesday. “With the CHIPS and Science Law boosting our efforts to make semiconductors right here at home, America is back leading the way.”

What do you think about the CPI data for July? What do you think about the critics and statistics that say true inflation in the U.S. is much higher than what’s being reported? Let us know your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.

230 Economists Warn the US Government’s Proposed Inflation Reduction Act Will Fuel Inflation

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230 Economists Warn the US Government's Proposed Inflation Reduction Act Will Fuel Inflation

Last week, Democrats unveiled climate and health care legislation called the “Inflation Reduction Act,” and there’s a lot of debate over the name of the proposed public policy measures. After the legislation was revealed, 230 economists sent a letter to the country’s House and Senate leaders warning that the proposed policies will actually fuel inflation. The letter stresses that there is an urgent need to curb America’s inflationary pressures, ​​but further notes the “‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’ is a misleading label applied to a bill that would likely achieve the exact opposite effect.”

230 Economists Tell House and Senate Leaders That the Proposed Climate and Health Care Legislation Is Not a Good Idea While the US Faces ‘Dangerous Crossroads’

Inflation has been high in 2022 and the Federal Reserve has been trying to curb the problem by raising the federal funds rate. There’s been a lot of debate over whether or not the U.S. is in a recession after two consecutive quarters of negative gross domestic product (GDP) growth. On Friday, there was some positive news, as the latest U.S. jobs report indicated that 528,000 jobs were added in July and unemployment data slid to pre-pandemic levels.

Amid the Ukraine-Russia war, tensions between China and Taiwan, and a gloomy global economy, U.S. Democrats have introduced new legislation to address climate change and health care called the Inflation Reduction Act. Democrats claim that the legislation will “make a historic down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation.” The $739 billion Inflation Reduction Act package recently got the green light from U.S. politicians Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer. The Arizona Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema was the last to show support for the proposed climate and health care legislation.

The politicians sponsoring the initiative also insist the policies will “invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030.” The act will be voted on Saturday and many people believe the legislation’s label is inaccurate and misleading. In fact, 230 economists wrote a letter to Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, Nancy Pelosi, and Kevin McCarthy to tell them that the bill would increase inflation.

“At a time when the economy already faces supply/demand imbalances, the residual effects of stimulus, labor shortages, and supply chain disruptions, this bill would compound rather than alleviate many of these problems,” the letter states. The economists’ letter to the House and Senate leaders adds:

In particular, its $433 billion in proposed government spending would create immediate inflation pressures by boosting demand, which the supply-side tax hikes would constrain supply by discouraging investment draining the private sector of much-need resources.

Redditors From r/Economy Subreddit Openly Mock Analysis by the Global Warming Advocacy Group That Claims Inflation Reduction Act Will Help Americans Save Money

Of course, Democrats, left-leaning media publications, and non-profit think tanks have stated that the Inflation Reduction Act would reduce inflation and allegedly lead to savings. A Yahoo Finance article written by Akiko Fujita attempts to prove the bill will help Americans save money by citing a new analysis published by the non-profit group Rewiring America.

The 501(c)(3) Rewiring America is a global warming advocacy group managed by Arabella Advisors. The Washington, D.C.-based for-profit consulting company Arabella controls the Sixteen Thirty Fund, the New Venture Fund, the Hopewell Fund, and the Windward Fund. Arabella itself was founded by the former Clinton administration appointee Eric Kessler.

While the analysis asserts the Inflation Reduction Act could lead to $1,800 in savings for the average household, a significant majority of Redditors from the subreddit r/economy did not agree with Rewiring America’s claims. One person quoted Rewiring America’s modern home installation requirements, and stressed: “How the f*** can a low-income household afford these?” The person who posted the article to r/economy replied to the individual by saying it was “typical government idiocy.” The Redditor added:

The entire green movement is a money grab for this generation.

Many other Redditors discussed how politicians have a “higher than the average” point of view when it comes to what is perceived as “low income” in the United States. “Just skimming through the article shows that the ‘$1,800’ in savings the average household would ‘get’ is actually tax breaks for low-income families to install more efficient electrical equipment. Is this a joke?” another Redditor asked.

“Unfortunately for us, it isn’t a joke,” the thread’s author wrote in response to the joke question.

Republican Senators have made it clear that Joe Manchin’s and Chuck Schumer’s Inflation Reduction Act reforms deal will not get traction from the right-leaning party. “Senator Manchin, if you think you’re gonna get 60 votes to get the sweeteners that can’t be done in reconciliation, you need to think long and hard about what you’re doing,” Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wrote on Friday.

What do you think about the letter 230 economists sent to House and Senate leaders about the proposed Inflation Reduction Act? Let us know your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.

US Personal Consumption Expenditures Tap Record Highs, Stanford Economist Says Fed Should Increase Rates Above 9%

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On July 29, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on America’s personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index for the month of June, and the figure saw the largest 12-month increase since 1982. On the same day, Stanford University’s senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and professor of economics, John Cochrane, said the Federal Reserve should increase rates above 9% to tame inflation.

PCE Price Index Increased 4.8 Percent From One Year Ago


The U.S. economy continues to look gloomy every time a new economic report or data is released to the general public. In mid-July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI) report was published, and it revealed June’s CPI data reflected a record peak 9.1% year-over-year increase. On July 27, the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked the federal funds rate by 75 basis points (bps) in order to help curb the red hot inflation.

Two days later, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released the closely watched personal consumption expenditures index data otherwise known as PCE. The PCE index saw the largest 12-month jump rising 6.8% in June, an increase that hasn’t been recorded since January 1982.

“From the same month one year ago, the PCE price index for June increased 6.8 percent,” the BEA report details. “Prices for goods increased 10.4 percent and prices for services increased 4.9 percent. Food prices increased 11.2 percent and energy prices increased 43.5 percent. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index increased 4.8 percent from one year ago,” the government entity’s records note. The BEA plans to release results from the National Economic Accounts annual update on September 29.

Professor of Economics at Stanford University Thinks a Gold or Bitcoin Standard Won’t Work


On the same day, the economist John Cochrane did an interview with Kitco’s newsdesk and said the U.S. central bank should bump interest rates higher than 9%. Cochrane further remarked that a gold or bitcoin standard would not be able to control inflation. The professor of economics at Stanford University said that the “consensus view” was that the Fed should hike rates “substantially above” the 9% region.

“That means, right now with 9 percent inflation, economists are talking about 10, 11, or 12 percent interest rates to bring [prices] down,” Cochrane remarked. “I think the Fed and markets are counting on a lot of inflation going away on its own without interest rates having to go quite that high,” the Stanford economist told Kitco News anchor David Lin.

Lin also asked Cochrane about a gold standard or a bitcoin standard used to control inflation. “Sorry, no,” the economist replied. “Under the gold standard, there was a lot of inflation and deflation. 10 or 20 percent ups and downs of inflation and deflation, but every inflation was then matched by a deflation. I’m sorry, we’re not going back to gold.” Cochrane believes the Fed needs to implement tighter fiscal policy in order to combat inflationary pressures.

As far as a bitcoin standard, Cochrane said it was an awful idea and insisted bitcoin (BTC) is “worthless.” “That’s a terrible idea,” Cochrane said in his interview with Lin. “In terms of financial technology, Bitcoin is an attempt to revive gold, something intrinsically worthless that people only hold onto because it’s rare… Bitcoin is also very poor for making transactions itself, since it’s so computationally intensive.” Cochrane concluded:

The best answer is our governments should start running sober fiscal and monetary policies, and pay more attention to keep inflation under control.


What do you think about the latest PCE data and the economist John Cochrane’s opinion? Do you think improved fiscal and monetary policies can help tame U.S. inflation? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

White House Reporter Says Inflation Has Become ‘Biden’s Political Nightmare’ as Critics Slam Government Spending

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White House Reporter Says Inflation Has Become 'Biden's Political Nightmare' as Critics Slam Government Spending

While the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI) report indicates U.S. inflation has continued to print perpetual new highs, U.S. president Joe Biden is losing ground on his climate bill. The Biden administration’s recent budget negotiations and tactics toward dealing with inflation have been criticized by West Virginia’s senator Joe Manchin who thinks specific parts of the climate bill could wait. Amid the political tussle, the U.S. government and Federal Reserve have been accused of massive spending, as bureaucrats continue to fuel weapons contractors, war, and the Fed’s balance sheet has not been reduced.

Political Strategist Says Inflation Knocked the Biden Administration and Democrats Down, but Not Out


U.S. president Joe Biden and his administration have been catching a lot of flak over the most recent CPI report, which detailed consumer prices in June increased at the fastest yearly rate since 1981. In the United States, the cost of oil, gasoline, electricity, food, and cars has continued to rise month after month.

While noting that rising inflation has been an issue for Americans, The Hill opinion contributor, Brad Bannon, believes “inflation has knocked Democrats down — but not out.” In an opinion editorial, Bannon says that Republicans face “political headwinds” that could challenge the party’s prospects.

Despite the knockdown from inflation, Bannon claims that the “continued visibility of Trump,” and the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade may lead to Republicans failing to appeal to voters. “If that wasn’t enough, the ongoing congressional investigation of the failed Jan. 6 Capitol coup keeps Trump in the middle of the media screen when the GOP wants the focus to be fixed on the incumbent president,” Bannon wrote.

Senator Joe Manchin Claims ‘Inflation Is Absolutely Killing Many People’


The Biden administration is also dealing with senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), who explained to a West Virginia radio host on Friday, that he was still “engaged” in Biden’s budget negotiations. Manchin told the radio host that “inflation is absolutely killing many, many people,” and he’s been against specific parts of Biden’s climate plan.

“Can’t we wait to make sure that we do nothing to add to that?” Manchin asked on the radio program. The West Virginia Democrat stressed that inflation is a “clear and present danger to our economy.”

“No matter what spending aspirations some in Congress may have, it is clear to anyone who visits a grocery store or a gas station that we cannot add any more fuel to this inflation fire,” Manchin said. “We can’t afford mistakes in the highest inflation we’ve seen in 40 years,” the senator added.

On the same day, Biden conceded to the lack of backing he needs for the administration’s climate change legislation. Biden remarked, however, that he plans to use “every power” that he has as president to continue his fight against global warming.

Congress Increases Military Spending, Gives 1.7 Billion to Ukraine, Federal Reserve Accused of Not Tapering the Central Bank’s Balance Sheet


Amid the scorching hot inflation, government spending continues to rise higher and higher. While Biden and the Democrats fight with Republicans in front of the media, bipartisan efforts have fueled the American government’s expenditure a great deal.

The journalist Glenn Greenwald explained on Saturday how the “establishment wings” of the two bickering political parties seem to agree on military expenditure regularly without much debate. Greenwald highlighted how Biden requested $803 billion to fund military spending in 2023 and Congress “arbitrarily increased it by $37 billion, to $840 billion.”

Five days ago, the U.S. Treasury and the Agency for International Development (USAID) gave the Government of Ukraine another $1.7 billion in aid. Estimates show that the American government has given Ukraine at least $6.8 billion and other benefits like access to Mi-17 helicopters, M777 howitzers, MANPAD systems, anti-tank guided missiles and Cheetah, Javelin, MILAN, and Harpoon missiles as well.

In addition to the U.S. government’s spending, the country’s central bank has been accused of continuing to print massive sums of U.S. dollars as reports show the Federal Reserve’s assets grew by $4 [billion during] the past week to $8.896 [trillion].

At the end of June, the gold bug and economist Peter Schiff remarked that the Fed has not stopped expanding the balance sheet. Schiff has been a critic of the Fed for years and has always been quite vocal against excessive government spending.

“The Fed’s balance sheet just expanded for the third week in a row in June,” Schiff wrote on Twitter. “The rise of $1.9 billion increased the size of the Fed’s balance sheet to $8.934 trillion. I wonder when the Fed will stop creating inflation by ending [quantitative easing] and actually start fighting it by beginning [quantitative tightening].”

Although, some individuals have said the Fed’s balance sheet is shrinking correctly. “They need to keep buying because their assets mature,” one individual noted on Twitter. “They are buying less than is maturing to reach the planned balance sheet shrinkage. To follow it day by day you need to know the exact maturities, but it is definitely still shrinking at the correct rate.”

However, people disagreed with that assessment and stressed that the Fed has “shown repeatedly that they’re buying far more than their own estimates from March.” The Biden administration said after the CPI report came out that because gas prices have dropped the recent CPI numbers were already out-of-date.

High Gas Prices Push Americans Toward Clean Energy, Biden’s Administrations Inflation Arguments and Economic Remedies Have Not Convinced Americans Its the Right Direction


On the other hand, a video of Biden’s Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg during an interview shows Buttigieg bragging about how high gas prices are forcing Americans to lean toward electric vehicles. Jennifer Granholm, Biden’s Energy Secretary recently highlighted that the high gas prices are “accelerating our progress toward clean energy.”

Despite the White House saying the CPI numbers were out of date, Americans don’t seem to be convinced by the excuses. The New York Times published a national poll that shows three-quarters of the public believe the country is heading in the wrong direction.

A survey from the University of Michigan indicates that American citizens have one of the worst outlooks about the U.S. economy in years and another poll shows inflation is the biggest concern to date. In the midst of the gloomy economic outlook, the senior White House correspondent Alexander Nazaryan noted that inflation has become “Biden’s political nightmare.”

What do you think about the rising inflation in America and the flak Joe Biden and his administration have received over the gloomy economic outlook? Do you agree that inflation has become a ‘political nightmare’ for Biden? Let us know your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.

US Inflation Remains Scorching Hot, Jumping to 9.1% in June — White House Says CPI Data Is Already ‘Out-of-Date’

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US Inflation Remains Scorching Hot Jumping to 9.1% in June, White House Says CPI Data Is Already 'Out-of-Date'

According to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, U.S. inflation remains scorching hot as it has risen at the fastest yearly rate since 1981. June’s CPI data reflected a 9.1% year-over-year increase, even though a number of bureaucrats and economists thought May’s CPI data would be the record peak.

US Inflation Continues to Print Perpetual New Highs

Inflation continues to climb higher in America as the CPI numbers for June show another monthly increase. “Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 9.1 percent before seasonal adjustment,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics report notes. “The increase was broad-based, with the indexes for gasoline, shelter, and food being the largest contributors.” The inflation increase in June was yet another record-setting spike as it rose at the fastest pace since November 1981.

After the CPI report was published, U.S. president Joe Biden’s administration addressed the subject. The White House also claimed that the data is already out of date and the CPI report does not reflect “the full impact of nearly 30 days of decreases in gas prices.” In fact, the White House says that “core inflation” has dropped for the third month in a row.

“Importantly, today’s report shows that what economists call annual ‘core inflation’ came down for the third month in a row, and is the first month since last year where the annual ‘core’ inflation rate is below six percent,” Biden’s statement detailed on Wednesday.

According to Bloomberg, the news publication surveyed a number of economists and they expected the CPI data for June to come in at 8.8%. With a massive inflation print, it is now assumed that the U.S. Federal Reserve will have to be “even more aggressive.” In addition to the CPI numbers that came in on Wednesday morning, the day before, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on an image that had shown “fake” CPI data. The fake CPI number that was seen on social media said the CPI data would come in at 10.2%.

Stocks, Gold, and Crypto Markets Shudder After US Inflation Report Published

After the real report was released, the stock market saw significant losses as the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 400 points. Every major stock index is down and the price of bitcoin (BTC) slipped from the $19,900 region to a July 13 low of $18,906 per unit. Precious metals also dropped in value as silver dipped by 0.58%, and gold slid by 0.41% on Wednesday.

While the real CPI numbers were discussed on Wednesday morning, many people tried to assimilate what the numbers would be without food and gasoline added to the equation. However, critics of these kinds of statements explained how they were foolish.

“Anyone saying ‘If you remove food and fuel from the CPI, inflation really isn’t that bad,’ try to live without food and gas for a month and let me know how that goes,” Washington Times columnist Tim Young wrote on Twitter.

What do you think about the record-setting CPI data that was published on Wednesday? Let us know your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.