Pirate's Cove

I’ll say it again: it’s not all Joe Biden’s fault. The primary cause is China’s coronavirus. This is hitting other nations. The U.K. just hit a 9% rise in the consumer price index, the most since 1992. They’re even saying that thousands of fish and chips shops could close. But, Biden’s policies are making it worse, not helping. It would really be better if Joe and his people said nothing and did nothing

Facing Higher Grocery Prices, Shoppers Change Habits

Susan Pollack, a property manager who was shopping one afternoon last week at a Costco in Marina del Rey, Calif., said she was startled that the price of a bulk pack of toilet paper had surged from $17 to $25.

At her local kosher butcher shop, the prices were rising even higher: more than $200 for a 5-pack of short ribs.

“I told my husband, ‘We’re never having short ribs again,’” she said.

Global forces such as supply chain disruptions, severe weather, energy costs and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have contributed to rising inflation rates that have spooked stock market investors and put President Biden’s administration on the defensive.

Weird, not one mention of China and their Wuhan flu. It’s almost like the NY Times doesn’t want to offend China.

But the pressure is felt most directly by shoppers doing their weekly runs to grocery stores, where some items that used to be plentiful have been missing for months and where prices for produce, meat and eggs remain stubbornly high. (snip)

Such price hikes have led to sticker shock, resignation and a determination to sniff out bargains.

“You look for more deals,” said Ray Duffy, a 66-year-old retired banker in an “Unapologetically American” T-shirt who was coming out of a Lidl grocery store in Garwood, N.J., recently.

Except, there aren’t that many deals out there, because stores cannot afford to do the crazy sales anymore. Many times I need to buy a different type of lettuce, romaine or pre-shredded, because there are no regular ones.

Alyssa Sutton, a 53-year-old home-theater business owner, left King’s Food Market in Short Hills, N.J., a grocery chain where a 13-ounce jar of Bonne Maman preserves was selling for $6.49.

“This inflation thing is a real problem,” she said. “When you’re paying twice as much to fill your gas tank and twice as much for everything, you’ve got to say to yourself, ‘Well, do I really need to buy everything at King’s?’”

Many people are store hopping.

It is normal for grocery stores to have 7 percent to 10 percent of items out of stock, but the events of the last two and half years — pandemic outbreaks, extreme weather, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — have caused that number to trend 3 to 5 points higher, said Katie Denis, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Brands Association.

What you may not notice is that the products may not be out of stock, but, they are limited stock. In many cases what you see on the shelf is what there is. There’s nothing in the storeroom. Manufacturers prioritize what they make. Try and find shoes. They are not making as many styles per brand as they used to.

Ms. Pollack, the property manager in California, said that while inflation is not straining her budget, the prices have made her reconsider purchases that were once impulsive. For example, she almost bought an electric shaver for her son, but then she saw it cost $90.

“I go through so much money all the time,” Ms. Pollack, 61, said, “and it’s like, ‘Wow. I didn’t buy anything fun today.’”

I want a new soundbar. I’ve been waiting for the one I’m most interested to go on sale. It did. Once. For a whole day. What you might see is flash sales, not week long sales. People are avoiding buying fun stuff. Welcome to the Let’s Go Brandon economy.