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Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: benwood who wrote (98448)	4/30/2001 4:21:27 PM
From: pater tenebrarum	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 436258

nothing between those friends. the way the money supply is exploding one wonders what they are thinking? inflation revives (anecdotal evidence, copied from kitco): Big-ticket items. Home prices are accelerating. The median price for existing homes rose to $143,500 in March, up 6.5% from a year earlier, says the National Association of Realtors. And rising home values are pushing up property taxes in some regions. Auto prices have inched up an average of 1.5%, although transaction prices — what buyers actually pay — have climbed 3.5% as they snap up expensive vehicles, says Art Spinella of CNW Market Research. usatoday.com Energy costs. Winter shortages and higher demand for both electricity and natural gas boosted utility bills by $200 or more a month for millions of consumers. Cooling bills are expected to be 30% to 50% higher this summer. Gasoline prices are up nearly 13 cents the past 2 weeks to an average price of $1.67 a gallon, up 8.4% since early April. usatoday.com Medical costs. Paced by prescription drugs and hospital fees, health care costs are rising at a 5.9% annual rate, the Labor Department says. Employers' insurance premiums are up 10% this year. Workers are feeling the pain because they pay one-third of the cost. Prices on leading prescription drugs such as hormone treatment Premarin and antidepressant Prozac are up 8% to 15%, says pharmacy benefit manager Express Scrips. Prices for drugs popular among senior citizens are up sharply, too, says Ron Pollack of consumer advocacy group Families USA. Consumer staples. Prices on some cuts of beef are up by 10%. The National Cattleman's Association blames the harsh winter, smaller herds and increased consumption. usatoday.com Consumer staples. Prices on some cuts of beef are up by 10%. The National Cattleman's Association blames the harsh winter, smaller herds and increased consumption. Cigarette prices are expected to rise to an average $3.05 a pack after last week's 14-cent wholesale price increase by Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds. They also raised wholesale prices 14 cents a pack in December. Milk is up 18 cents or more a gallon in some states, boosting the price of other dairy-related products. "Inflation fears? You betcha," says Pendra Jane Rich, a logistics manager from Toledo, Ohio. "Up through last year, yogurt cost 39 cents. Now, it's 69 cents." Julia Rutherford, a retiree from De Leon Springs, Fla., says her monthly house payment has risen considerably because of higher property taxes. And she finds higher prices for staples disturbing. "Ground beef is more than $2 a pound. It's outrageous," says Rutherford, 69. usatoday.com Some price increases are almost too subtle to notice. Leather furniture prices are up 15% or more. That's because disease scares plaguing European cattle have pushed prices for cowhide skins up 66%. Some of the USA's 35,000 laundromats have held back surging utility costs by cutting drying times on laundry loads. Not that cleaning costs haven't soiled pocketbooks — about 80% of laundromats have raised prices at least 20% to an average $1.50 a load, according to the Coin Laundry Association. usatoday.com Compensation Costs Continue to Move Up, Fed Is In a Tough Spot April 26, 2001 The Employment Cost Index ( ECI ) rose 1.1% in the first quarter, taking the year-to-year gain to 4.1%. This is the fifth consecutive quarter when compensation costs have risen in excess of 4.0%. Both major components of the ECI rose at a faster pace in the first quarter compared with the prior quarter. Wages and salaries increased 1.0% and benefit costs advanced 1.3% in the first quarter. Benefits costs rose largely due to higher health insurance costs. ntrs.com