Record drop in Consumer prices more than expected (as always) - ( last record set in October).

[JohnWxy]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081216/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/economy

Prices fell 1.7 percent, surpassing the previous record decline of 1 percent set in October. It was the largest one-month decline dating to February 1947. Core inflation, excluding food and energy, was flat in November after a 0.1 percent drop in October.

The overall slide in prices reflects the big drop in energy costs in recent months. After hitting a record at $147 per barrel in mid-July, crude oil has fallen by $100 per barrel since then, pushing down the price of gasoline from a record $4.11 per gallon in July to $1.34 in the most recent Energy Department survey.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why is it I can never find the prices they refer to in news articles? I went here: http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/wrgp/mogas_home_page.html and what I found was average price U.S., for a gallon of regular at $1.66.

can anybody help me find where they get these numbers?

[aquart]

1. When does it hit peanut butter?

[pinqy]

9. Sorry, Peanut Butter went up 0.7% n/t

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. But what is happening with food and energy?

Are they rising more than 1.7%? If so, expect a steeper drop in "consumer prices" because folks have to use their money to buy food and heat their homes.

[JohnWxy]

5. Food came up 2.%, per the article. Gasoline came down 29.5% in Nov, per the article. Demand for

for food will hardly decline at all. Demand for anything that can be scrimped on will decline. That's why I posted this. It's further strong evidence of how severe this recession is. Of course, if the WH doesn't get a bridge loan to the domestic auto makers in time we'll be going into depression.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Energy prices fell by 17 percent in November, nearly double the 8.6 percent decline in October. Both declines represented record drops. Gasoline costs fell by a record 29.5 percent in November, while home heating oil costs were down 14.6 percent and natural gas prices were off 5.2 percent.

Food costs posted a modest 0.2 percent rise in November, the smallest increase in eight months.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[pinqy]

8. The breakdown:

All items -1.7
Food and beverages 0.2
Housing -0.1
Apparel 0.3
Transportation -9.8
Medical care 0.2
Recreation 0
Education and communication 0.2
Other goods and services 0

Special indexes:
Energy -17
Food 0.2
All items less food and energy 0

[Frustratedlady]

3. When does it hit SUGAR?

Good grief. First, they reduce the size of the package from 5# to 4# and now, they have raised the price through the roof. $2.59 for a 4# bag.

Perfect time of year, with all the baking.

[Virginia Dare]

4. Are we in a deflationary period now?....

it sure seems like it. Wow, that's bad.

[JohnWxy]

6. Yes. I think you could say it started in November. Of course, if businesses would pass on

the decline in energy costs (and in the case of food the decline in farm commodity prices) then price decline would help keep demand up. But the real problem is the people just don't have the money (and since credit supports a lot of consumer purchases - the lack of credit availablility is just as important) to buy much more than the necessities.

Still, if the businessmen would pass along cost reductions due to lower energy and lower commodity costs that would help maintain demand.

[JohnWxy]

7. I think the YAHOO news report that retail gasoline prices hit $1.34 is wrong. What I found at EIA

site EIA shows $1.699 per gallon and the report form Reutiers says $1.66 (close, but not a cigar) a gallon and also says that's down "$1.34 from a year ago."

Perhaps the Yahoo News people read Reuters article and got it wrong.


http://www.forbes.com/reuters/feeds/reuters/2008/12/15/2008-12-15T215012Z_01_N15523886_RTRIDST_0_USA-GASOLINE-PRICE.html

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The average U.S. retail gasoline price dropped 4 cents in the last week to $1.66 a gallon, the Energy Information Administration said Monday.

The national price for regular unleaded gasoline is down $1.34 from a year ago, the EIA said in its weekly survey of service stations.

(more)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

But again, what I found on the EIA site was $1.699 per gallon. Sorry Reuters. and Yahoo news - time for a correction.