The annual Thanksgiving feast will be slightly less expensive this year for a 10-person feast, with prices declining by about 3 percent.
Consumers experienced relief in October as price inflation for durables and personal goods slowed for the first time in three months, according to data intelligence firm OpenBrand.
Data from the OpenBrand Consumer Price Index, released on Nov. 10, show prices for big-ticket goods and personal-care products ticked up 0.22 percent last month, down from the 0.48 percent increase in September.
The government shutdown, now in its 40th day, has made it challenging to determine trends forming in the broader economy. Economic observers have turned to alternative measurements, including OpenBrand, which monitors daily price movements across the marketplace.
“Deceleration of price growth was observed across all of our price groups except communication devices, with prices of both appliances and personal goods seeing nominal price deflation in October,” OpenBrand said in the report.
“Amongst appliances, decreases were observed across most categories of products.”
The downward price growth trajectory was seen in various categories.
Laundry appliances, for example, increased by 0.9 percent in August, but subsequently declined by 0.48 percent in September and 0.86 percent in October. Likewise, hair dryers increased 1.15 percent in August, but eased to 0.82 percent in September and fell by 1.27 percent in October.
Falling prices had been driven by the magnitude of merchants’ discounting activity, although the frequency of these discounts was little changed.
Truflation, another real-time tracker of consumer and spending data relying on a trove of data points, suggests price inflation is below the federal government’s reported rate.
The Truflation U.S. Inflation Index, updated on Oct. 10, was 2.52 percent. This is down from the recent high of 2.7 percent and is virtually unchanged from a year ago.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the September Consumer Price Index last month, indicating a headline annual inflation rate of 3 percent—cooler than the market consensus.
Meanwhile, other pockets of the economy suggest that shoppers’ wallets are feeling a respite.
Gasoline prices are lower than they were a year ago. The national average for a gallon of gas is $3.07, according to the American Automobile Association, down from $3.09 at the same time last year. The latest increase has been skewed by refinery maintenance in California, which has raised prices in the area to $4.72 a gallon—the highest in the nation.
“Still, the national average is lower than it was this time last year, and gas prices should remain on a quiet path as we get closer to Thanksgiving,” the association said in an update.
The annual Thanksgiving feast will be slightly less expensive this year for a 10-person feast, with prices declining by about 3 percent, experts at the Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute said in a report.
“In a win for consumers and a testament to the behind-the-scenes coordination between producers and retailers, the American consumer will have reason to celebrate this Thanksgiving,” the report stated.
By Andrew Moran
