A quick peek at grocery store shelves might tell you how your local economy is doing

[struggle4progress]

The financial markets have always had their tulip crazes and South Sea bubbles -- so it never really tells us much when idiots on Wall Street decide to mop their floors with champagne

And the job reports are always estimates: they might be useful for economic forecasting when done carefully, but they can easily turn into meaningless puff if produced by partisan hacks

Peek at the grocery store shelves

[ProfessorGAC]

1. No Longer An Issue Here

But, I don't think that reflects on all the little shops, the restaurants, and the folks that work there.
In fact, maybe the store shelves are full because a bunch of people can barely afford to shop.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Exhibit One: ground chuck (a/k/a hamburger meat) selling at $8.99 a pound.

That seems kind of excessive for its value . . . . . .

And for the more luxury-minded carnivores: ribeye steak going for $28.99. Just one.

[SheltieLover]

4. Same here

Economy hardly booming in Memphis metro, but 80/20 hamburger was $18 for 2.5 lbs. A week ago, it was about $10.

Steaks (that our Pit works hard to chew - not joking!) Were sky high.

[LeftInTX]

9. Meat packing plants closed

Regular frozen meals are at their usual prices.

I eat alot of Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice etc. They are at their usual prices.

(I hate to cook!!)

[luvs2sing]

3. Columbus, Ohio..

Most things available at Kroger, though pasta, rice, beans, and meat are a little short in supply. I found everything I needed yesterday. The issue here is prices. I paid over $40 more yesterday for practically the same groceries I get every two weeks.

[FloridaBlues]

5. Prices have jumped on most items. Hope they come down as quick but not likely

[Kilgore]

6. Full shelves in SW WA

Hit the grocery (winco) today. Saw no empty shelves, saw no limits. Stocked up on pork ribs, $1.99/lb

[Timewas]

7. at Jobs report

Comes from feds, they are trumps personal appointees and they are all lying for him..I do not believe anything that comes from any federal offices anymore

[Igel]

8. Supply chains are shifting.

Even when some things were impossible to get at grocery stores, some restaurants were still able to get the stuff easily and were reselling it. In smaller quantities, where states allowed; in the original containers in mine.

Meat packing plants are coming back on line, but the supply chains are still a bit messed up. Meat's going to be a bit iffy for a while, but as restaurants open those supply lines, still in place, will start bearing more of the load again.

I saw a claim that a few years ago the number of meals eaten out of the house had passed 50%, meaning that grocery stores provided the food for less than half of the meals served. Suddenly they were responsible for providing food for nearly 100% of the meals served. That's a big shift. Requires some imagination, and humility, to see it applying to most jobs.

A few days before the lockdown a orthopedist told me to get some exercise equipment for shoulder rehab. But the next day we left town for a few days, and there was no rush. When the lockdown hit, there was no exercise equipment to be had. Same effect--it wasn't that the exercise equipment industry imploded in a fiscal meltdown, but all the buff nuts needed their endorphin rushes and, faced with their gyms being closed for a long time, bought up what they could. Same problem: Most exercise was done outside the home, suddenly it was all being done in the garage or living room. Same thing.

[In It to Win It]

10. Everything is fine where I am but I have noticed some hurricane pricing

I have a hurricane prone area -Florida- where the prices of shit tend to go up when there's a hurricane.

I've noticed increases in prices in groceries. My mother's out of pocket expense on prescriptions are twice what they were before the first wave of COVID shock.