What’s Up With Inflation? 

During your back-to-school shopping, you might have noticed that everything from jeans to notebooks was more expensive. So are groceries, gas, housing, and even haircuts.

Over the past year, the cost of goods and services in the United States has soared. Taylor Farrell, 18, of Chelsea, Vermont, has felt the effects firsthand. She drives a large pickup truck and an SUV—both of which aren’t very fuel efficient—and her job, friends, and high school are all at least a 30-minute drive from her house. It used to cost her about $50-$60 to fill up her tank, but this summer, gas prices surged—causing her to cut back on visiting friends to save money.

“I put off filling the tank up for quite a while,” Farrell says. “And I was at probably an eighth of a tank and I put $100 in it, and it didn’t fill it. I was just like, ‘Oh my goodness.’ ”

When the price of nearly everything we buy rises, it’s called inflation. A 2 percent inflation rate is considered normal in the U.S. (At that rate, a $10 T-shirt increases in cost by about 20 cents a year.)

But prices have been climbing much faster than usual. This spring, inflation in the U.S. reached a 40-year high. From June 2021 to June 2022, prices at stores leaped by 9.1 percent. Read on to find out why this is happening and when costs are expected to return to normal.

During your back-to-school shopping, you might have seen that everything from jeans to notebooks costs more. Groceries, gas, housing, and even haircuts have gotten more expensive.

Over the past year, the cost of goods and services in the United States has soared. Taylor Farrell, 18, of Chelsea, Vermont, has felt the effects firsthand.

Her job, friends, and high school are all at least a 30-minute drive from her house. She drives a large pickup truck and an SUV. Both cars aren’t very fuel efficient. It used to cost her about $50-$60 to fill up her tank, but this summer, gas prices surged. That caused her to cut back on visiting friends to save money.

“I put off filling the tank up for quite a while,” Farrell says. “And I was at probably an eighth of a tank and I put $100 in it, and it didn’t fill it. I was just like, ‘Oh my goodness.’ ”

When the price of nearly everything we buy rises, it’s called inflation. A 2 percent inflation rate is considered normal in the U.S. (At that rate, a $10 T-shirt increases in cost by about 20 cents a year.)

But prices have been climbing much faster than usual. This spring, inflation in the U.S. reached a 40-year high. From June 2021 to June 2022, prices at stores leaped by 9.1 percent. Read on to find out why this is happening and when costs are expected to return to normal.

The problem began with the Covid-19 pandemic, which started taking a toll on the U.S. in early 2020. Remember having to wait months to get a new bike or video game? That happened because the pandemic disrupted the global supply chain. Factories slowed or stopped production because workers got sick. Companies had trouble making and delivering products as a result.

At the same time, Americans who were staying home as infection rates rose began buying more. When goods or services are in high demand but in short supply, companies often raise prices. This principle is known as “supply and demand.” Despite costs going up, many people didn’t start slowing their spending until this summer.

Lastly, the rising price of oil has added to the problem. Oil is used to make, transport, and power many products. As a result, when it costs more, those goods do too.

Oil prices have increased because demand is high and supply is low. (During the pandemic, people cut back on driving and flying. In turn, oil companies began producing less.) And Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February disrupted the global oil market. To punish Russia, a major oil producer, the U.S. and the European Union banned most Russian oil. That reduced oil availability even more.

Gasoline, which is made from oil, has seen the biggest increase. Between April 2020 and April 2022, a gallon of gas more than doubled in price. Prices then continued to soar during the early summer. In June, the national average price per gallon reached more than $5.

That spike hit Americans in two ways. First, they had to pay more to gas up their cars. Many businesses also raised their prices to cover their own increased transportation costs.

Grocery prices have also seen big jumps.

“Large amounts of oil and natural gas go into fertilizers and pesticides that are used to produce and protect grains, vegetables, and fruits,” explains Veronika Dolar, an economics professor at the State University of New York at Old Westbury.

And since grain is needed to feed cattle and other farm animals, the price of meat has increased too. If your school cafeteria has cut back on burgers, it may be because of higher costs. As of June, the price of ground beef was up nearly 10 percent since last year.

Essentially, our money doesn’t go as far as it once did. In June, the average U.S. household needed to spend nearly $500 a month more than it did last year to pay for the same goods and services, according to a report by Moody’s Analytics.

People’s paychecks aren’t rising as fast as prices. That means Americans need to stretch their dollars further to cover weekly expenses. Walmart, the nation’s largest food retailer, reports that its shoppers are buying cheaper store-brand items rather than pricier alternatives. They’re also reaching for half gallons of milk rather than full gallons.

Low-income households have been especially hard hit because they were already spending most of their money on food and other necessities before prices went up. Increasing rents have added to the crunch.

People “are having to decide between buying food for their children . . . or paying rent,” Dana Karni of Lone Star Legal Aid in Houston, Texas, told reporters. “And that’s a real tight squeeze.”

In short, our money doesn’t go as far as it once did. In June, the average U.S. household needed to spend nearly $500 a month more than it did last year to pay for the same goods and services, according to a report by Moody’s Analytics.

People’s paychecks aren’t rising as fast as prices. That means Americans need to stretch their dollars further to cover weekly expenses. Walmart, the nation’s largest food retailer, reports that its shoppers are buying cheaper store-brand items rather than pricier name-brand items. They’re also reaching for half gallons of milk rather than full gallons.

Low-income households have been especially hard hit. That’s because they were already spending most of their money on food and other needs before prices went up. Increasing rents have added to the crunch.

People “are having to decide between buying food for their children . . . or paying rent,” Dana Karni of Lone Star Legal Aid in Houston, Texas, told reporters. “And that’s a real tight squeeze.”

When there’s a lot of inflation, you want to cool the economy down,” says Dolar. “You want to cut down the demand.”

One way to decrease demand is to make borrowing money more expensive. To do that, the government can raise interest rates. These rates dictate how much you’ll have to pay back a lender, such as a bank, when you borrow money. They’re largely set by a government agency called the Federal Reserve, or the Fed.

In June and July, the Fed made the two largest increases to interest rates in nearly three decades. These increases also affect credit card rates. U.S. officials hope that they will lead some people to hold off on making big purchases.  If there’s less demand for goods and services, companies will be more likely to cut their prices to attract customers.

Financial experts hope not. The Federal Reserve will likely continue to slowly raise interest rates as needed until demand for goods and services cools. Once that happens, supply will increase and prices should level off.

As of early June, some experts were predicting that inflation in the U.S. could drop to about 3 percent next year as supply chains get back to normal. That much of a rate drop would help prices come back down too, they explain. At the same time, Dolar says, people’s paychecks may rise.

“Typically, what happens is that prices go up and eventually wages or salaries come up as well,” says Dolar. “Then we’re able to buy the same amount of stuff as before.”

Financial experts hope not. The Federal Reserve will likely continue to slowly raise interest rates as needed. It’ll do so until demand for goods and services cools. Once that happens, supply will increase and prices should level off.

As of early June, some experts were saying that inflation in the U.S. could drop to about 3 percent next year as supply chains get back to normal. That much of a rate drop would help prices come back down too, they explain. At the same time, Dolar says, people’s paychecks may rise.

“Typically, what happens is that prices go up and eventually wages or salaries come up as well,” says Dolar. “Then we’re able to buy the same amount of stuff as before.”

With additional reporting by Chrisanne Grisé.

With additional reporting by Chrisanne Grisé.