U.S. ECONOMY REBOUNDS BUT CONSUMER GOODS AREN’T GOING TO BE CHEAP

The US economy is rebounding, Gabby Jones of the New York Times reported in the evening of April 29, 2021 (April 30, 2021 in Manila), bolstered mainly by stimulus checks and the easing of restrictions in many parts of the country.

“The first-quarter growth rate reached 6.4 percent, and economists expect overall economic activity to return to pre-pandemic levels in the current quarter. Consumer spending is up. Amazon reported $108.5 billion in sales in the first three months of the year, up by 44 percent from a year earlier. It also posted $8.1 billion in profit,” Jones added.

While the economy is almost back, the recovery is profoundly unequal across sectors, unbalanced in ways that have big implications for businesses and workers, Jones stressed.

However, consumer goods are going to be more expensive. Retailers that absorbed higher costs in 2020 are rebalancing pricing to fit profit expectations and also to take inflation into account, Will Dudding and Jade-Snow Joachim also reported in the New York Times Thursday Evening Briefing.

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