Grand Canyon Times

Arizona residents are feeling the pinch as record levels of inflation are impacting their ability to afford the cost of basic goods and services.

According to Arizona PBS, residents in the state report inflation making an appearance in grocery and cost of living expenses. As is in other areas of the country, state experts attribute the rise in expenses to “the supply chain, the ongoing labor shortages, and the pandemic.” 

In years past, cooking at home was far cheaper than restaurant dining, but according to recent reports, “the cost of eating at home is climbing faster than the cost of dining out," Arizona PBS reports.

“The meats are very high,” economist Dennis Hoffman, the director of the L. William Seidman Research Institute at the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University told Arizona PBS. “Some of the basic commodities… The determinants there are weird things like transportation, packaging. You know, obviously, demand of these products is up.”

Gasoline pump prices have been on the rise in response to global tensions increasing oil prices. According to the current AAA Gas Price report, areas of the Western United States are experiencing the highest retail gas prices in the country. Arizona is among seven states with the highest prices. The average for regular gas is $3.65 per gallon; the average for mid-grade is $3.93 per gallon; the average for premium is $4.19 per gallon; and the average for diesel is $3.92 per gallon.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released data showing that the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose significantly for 2021. 

This index is "a measure of the average change in prices over time in a fixed market basket of goods and services" purchased by urban consumers. CPI-U is based on the cost of food, clothing, shelter, fuels, drugs, transportation costs, medical fees, and other essential goods and services.

According to the report, CPI-U reveals that the year 2021 brought a 7% increase in the all-items index from January to December. This is the largest 12-month increase the country has experienced in 40 years—the last record high having been documented in June of 1982.

The food index alone rose 6.3%, while the energy index increased by 29.3%. The 12-month increase for food at home was 6.5%, as “all of the six major grocery store food group indexes increased over the period.” The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs took the greatest hit, with a 12.5% increase throughout 2021.

As inflation soars to its highest level in 40 years, a McLaughlin & Associates poll reveals a significant change in public views on the economy when compared to similar polling in 2021. As of January 2022, 52% of Americans who responded to the poll believe the country is currently in a recession, while 40% believe the U.S. economy is not in recession. These numbers are drastically different from those of January 2021. When asked a year ago, nearly 70% of Americans felt the U.S. economy was not going through a recession, and less than 25% said it was in recession.