Wholesale Prices in 2007 Up 6.3 Percent

[Wretched Excess]

Wholesale Prices in 2007 Up 6.3 Percent
Wholesale Prices Rise in 2007 by 6.3 Percent, Largest Amount in 26 Years

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Wholesale inflation last year shot up by the largest amount in 26 years while retailers suffered their worst December shopping season in five years as mounting economic woes caused consumers to put away their wallets.

The Labor Department reported that wholesale inflation was up 6.3 percent for all of 2007, reflecting a huge increase for the year in various types of energy costs ranging from gasoline to home heating oil.

Meanwhile, retail sales fell by 0.4 percent in December, the worst showing in six months, the Commerce Department reported. Consumer confidence has plunged, reflecting the worsening housing slump and a lingering credit crisis.

For inflation, the year ended on a more positive note, with wholesale prices falling by 0.1 percent in December. That reflected decreasing costs last month for gasoline and other energy products. It was a significant slowdown after prices had soared by 3.2 percent in November, which had been the biggest one-month increase in 34 years.

Story



of course, the story could have been written in a less horrifying way.  slump, crisis, plunged . . . . we're all doomed, DOOMED, DOOMED!

[Thor]

a lot of the wholesale price increase can be related to the ethanol scheme. Corn prices are extremely high and everything else has followed, especially food.

[Lauri]

we were just talking about this with some neighbors this evening..

every single bill we got in December seemed like it was higher by at least 50 bucks.. im not complaining, we are blessed to be able to cover our needs, but geez! i was expecting a 450 dollar light bill and it was 891 bucks!

now, this isnt our regular electricity bill.. it was for the christmas lights on our house. we had them professionally done for the first time ever and next year it wont be so much (cause now we have all the strings of lights already measured and cut to our house eaves, specifically) but still... that was a big shock.

[Lauri]

p.s.  auto fuel in this area dropped almost 30 cents recently.. so, thats a plus i guess.

[Lord Undies]

we were just talking about this with some neighbors this evening..

every single bill we got in December seemed like it was higher by at least 50 bucks.. im not complaining, we are blessed to be able to cover our needs, but geez! i was expecting a 450 dollar light bill and it was 891 bucks!

now, this isnt our regular electricity bill.. it was for the christmas lights on our house. we had them professionally done for the first time ever and next year it wont be so much (cause now we have all the strings of lights already measured and cut to our house eaves, specifically) but still... that was a big shock.

My bills for December were the lowest all year.  I guess it's where you live. 

Your Christmas lights reminds me of the old Burns & Allen TV show.   To save on electricity, Gracie shortened the cord on her vacuum cleaner.

[Lauri]

we were just talking about this with some neighbors this evening..

every single bill we got in December seemed like it was higher by at least 50 bucks.. im not complaining, we are blessed to be able to cover our needs, but geez! i was expecting a 450 dollar light bill and it was 891 bucks!

now, this isnt our regular electricity bill.. it was for the christmas lights on our house. we had them professionally done for the first time ever and next year it wont be so much (cause now we have all the strings of lights already measured and cut to our house eaves, specifically) but still... that was a big shock.

My bills for December were the lowest all year.  I guess it's where you live. 

Your Christmas lights reminds me of the old Burns & Allen TV show.   To save on electricity, Gracie shortened the cord on her vacuum cleaner.

i turned our thermostat down every day to 60 ... just call me Gracie ..

[Uhhuh35]

Your Christmas lights reminds me of the old Burns & Allen TV show.   To save on electricity, Gracie shortened the cord on her vacuum cleaner.

Ah that's a good one! Nothin' better than comediens who don't need foul language. I used to watch re-runs of You Bet Your Life on Channel 5(?) in LA. Nothin' funnier than Groucho interacting with the contestants!

[NHSparky]

we were just talking about this with some neighbors this evening..

every single bill we got in December seemed like it was higher by at least 50 bucks.. im not complaining, we are blessed to be able to cover our needs, but geez! i was expecting a 450 dollar light bill and it was 891 bucks!

now, this isnt our regular electricity bill.. it was for the christmas lights on our house. we had them professionally done for the first time ever and next year it wont be so much (cause now we have all the strings of lights already measured and cut to our house eaves, specifically) but still... that was a big shock.

My bills for December were the lowest all year.  I guess it's where you live. 

Your Christmas lights reminds me of the old Burns & Allen TV show.   To save on electricity, Gracie shortened the cord on her vacuum cleaner.

i turned our thermostat down every day to 60 ... just call me Gracie ..

Programmable thermostats ROCK.  Just got my oil tank refilled yesterday.  177 gallons lasted me just over two months.  I'll be able to get through the entire winter on probably 500 gallons.  Hell of an accomplishment for NH.

[Rick]

Hmmm the minimin wage in California just went up 6% first of the year. And 6% last year. Any correlation you think?

[Chris_]

CAFE Rule Will Add $900 to $10,000 to Cost of Car

The Comerica Automotive Affordability Index says that the average cost of a passenger car today is $27, 958. If CAFE standards add $900 to the price of a car, it will raise the average car price to $28,858; but if the CAFE regulations cost closer to $10,000 to implement, the average price could go up to $37,958.

Bob Lutz, vice chairman at General Motors, predicts the highest increase per vehicle -between $4,000 and $10,000 - with the average about $6,000.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACCEE), a liberal group, claims a council study shows a much lower cost increase - about $900 for smaller vehicles to $1,500 for the largest cars and trucks.

Whatever the real cost is, however, the experts agree the consumer will foot the bill.

(more...)


http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200801/NAT20080118a.html

[Lauri]

we were just talking about this with some neighbors this evening..

every single bill we got in December seemed like it was higher by at least 50 bucks.. im not complaining, we are blessed to be able to cover our needs, but geez! i was expecting a 450 dollar light bill and it was 891 bucks!

now, this isnt our regular electricity bill.. it was for the christmas lights on our house. we had them professionally done for the first time ever and next year it wont be so much (cause now we have all the strings of lights already measured and cut to our house eaves, specifically) but still... that was a big shock.

My bills for December were the lowest all year.  I guess it's where you live. 

Your Christmas lights reminds me of the old Burns & Allen TV show.   To save on electricity, Gracie shortened the cord on her vacuum cleaner.

i turned our thermostat down every day to 60 ... just call me Gracie ..

Programmable thermostats ROCK.  Just got my oil tank refilled yesterday.  177 gallons lasted me just over two months.  I'll be able to get through the entire winter on probably 500 gallons.  Hell of an accomplishment for NH.

we just got air conditioning in our new house last summer. we got a new key pad for the programmable thermostat and .. it is smarter than i am.

i just manually turn it down every morning cause its set at 68 .. i need to just get the book out and try and figure it out.

[Lauri]

ok, so for the new cafe rules on cars...

does this mean we wont be able to get old cars anymore that will pass all the new regulations? i was kind of hoping my next car might be a classic oldster .. something small and maybe a two seater.

will we still be able to do that?

[Chris_]

ok, so for the new cafe rules on cars...

does this mean we wont be able to get old cars anymore that will pass all the new regulations? i was kind of hoping my next car might be a classic oldster .. something small and maybe a two seater.

will we still be able to do that?

They will probably grandfather them in the same way they did in '74.  Any pre-'74 vehicle either doesn't have to be tested, or has to meet the existing standard at the time.  I can pick up a gas-guzzler 1974 GMC and don't have to get the annual test. 

[Lacarnut]

a lot of the wholesale price increase can be related to the ethanol scheme. Corn prices are extremely high and everything else has followed, especially food.

The mental midgets in DC forgot about the fact that Ethanol reduces the mpg when mixed with gasoline. Brilliant. 

[Thor]

Lauri, next year, get LED Christmas lights. You'll hardly see any difference in your bill. The "white" ones suck because they look bluish. From what I understand, the colored ones are good to go.

Lacarnut, yeah, there's been a 10% ethanol blend forced into the gas blends and vehicles here in MN for years. Ethanol especially sucks for mileage during the winter. My mileage is down by 20%.

[NHSparky]

Same here.  I drive a Ford and have seen my average mileage drop from 18 mpg or so to 16 since we switched over to "winter blend" in November.

[Lauri]

ok, so for the new cafe rules on cars...

does this mean we wont be able to get old cars anymore that will pass all the new regulations? i was kind of hoping my next car might be a classic oldster .. something small and maybe a two seater.

will we still be able to do that?

They will probably grandfather them in the same way they did in '74.  Any pre-'74 vehicle either doesn't have to be tested, or has to meet the existing standard at the time.  I can pick up a gas-guzzler 1974 GMC and don't have to get the annual test. 

well, that would be cool. i may not ever find one... but it would be cool to have a little cheap car to drive for a while. paid off and minimal gas... that's a dream.

[Lauri]

Lauri, next year, get LED Christmas lights. You'll hardly see any difference in your bill. The "white" ones suck because they look bluish. From what I understand, the colored ones are good to go.

Lacarnut, yeah, there's been a 10% ethanol blend forced into the gas blends and vehicles here in MN for years. Ethanol especially sucks for mileage during the winter. My mileage is down by 20%.

well, here's the problem.. we already got the lights cut to the size of our house.

to go with LED, we'd have to have a whole new set cut to the size of our house again..  next year the bill to put them up and take them down will be much less since they already measured and cut the strands.

still, we could cut down on the hours they are lit every night..