In light of today’s CPI release, we cannot allow Inflation fear-mongering to distract us from the real issues: corporate concentration and decades of underinvestment. Below is a sampling of reporting on recent price hikes that got it right:
Popular Information: How concentrated corporate power makes inflation worse. “[A]cross a range of sectors that produce the goods that people need to provide for their families, companies are extracting from their consumers using the excuse of inflation — all while lining their shareholders’ and CEO’s pockets,” Rakeen Mabud, Chief Economist at the Groundwork Collaborative, told Popular Information. “This has nothing to do with inflation, and everything to do with corporate greed by those who are focused on enriching themselves at the expense of workers and families.” [11/10/21]
Business Insider: You know who’s not hurting from inflation? Big business. Top executives have been well aware of their “pricing power” during this inflationary moment, and if you pay close enough attention, they’re letting slip how great this time is for profit-making. [11/9/21]
Washington Post: In the supply chain battle of 2021, small businesses are losing out to Walmart and Amazon. Independent retailers are getting squeezed out as suppliers, factories and freight companies prioritize national brands: “We’re at the whim of a broken supply chain.” [11/7/21]
The New Republic: It’s Time for Biden to Go on Offense. Take on the negative experiences of inflation by calling out corporations that are unnecessarily jacking up prices on consumers, stiffing their own workers, and then reporting record profits while distributing dividends to investors. Use the power of the bully pulpit to demand some of these companies raking it in to do right by the workers who have made them those profits. [11/3/21]
The Wall Street Journal: Procter & Gamble Uses Its Size to Lessen Impact of Supply-Chain Mess. From furniture makers to grocers, the world’s biggest companies are using their deep pockets, sprawling global operations and commanding market share to insulate themselves from the global supply-chain meltdown. [10/19/21]
Quartz: Why are US beef prices soaring? There is also renewed concern that a few giant meatpacking companies are taking advantage of rising meat prices. Meatpacking companies’ profits soared during the pandemic—for instance, Tyson Foods reported a net income of $753 million in the third quarter of 2021, up from $526 million the same period last year. [10/18/21]
Common Dreams: Corporate Greed the ‘Real Culprit Behind Rising Prices,’ Researchers Say. Amid mounting data showing that people are paying more for food at grocery stores around the United States, a new analysis out Wednesday reveals how corporate power is “the real culprit behind rising prices at the checkout line.” [10/14/21]
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Groundwork Collaborative: The Groundwork Collaborative’s mission is to advance an economic vision for strong, broadly shared prosperity and true opportunity for all. Visit our website and follow us on Twitter @Groundwork.