U.S. inflation in 2021 was the highest since 1982, with December consumer prices up 7% from a year earlier
John Merritt, vice president of Elaine Bell Catering in Napa, Calif., said staffing was an immediate issue when demand for weddings and other big events came surging back last June. The company raised wages 50% in a bid to retain workers and hire new ones, but still had to rely on the services of temp agencies. Due to increased labor costs—along with soaring prices for meat, cheese and wheat-based products—the company didn’t make a profit last year, he said.
Demand for furniture and other goods has boomed during the pandemic, straining supply chains and fueling much of the inflation surge. In some industries, scarce materials have hamstrung production. The most prominent example is a shortage of semiconductors that has curbed auto production, sending prices for cars and trucks soaring.
As prices for groceries, clothing and electronics have gone up in the U.S., similar costs in Japan have stayed low. WSJ’s Peter Landers goes shopping in Tokyo to explain why steady prices, though good for your wallet, can be a sign of a slow-growing economy. Photo: Richard B. Levine/Zuma Press; Kim Kyung Hoon/Reuters