EXCERPT:
ROMANS: "Call it the big 'I,' inflation, the downside of a hot economy. The pandemic disrupted supply chains and consumer behavior. Working out kinks in distribution is causing shortages and price spikes from lumber to steel to rental cars. Add in the historic stimulus to keep the Coronavirus recession from becoming a depression, more people have more money in their pockets and they are chasing after higher prices as the economy reopens. If you haven’t felt it yet, it’s coming. You can expect higher prices for toilet paper, diapers, soft drinks, plane tickets, a tank full of gas. Whirlpool is raising prices of some of its appliances by up to 12%. Now a shortage of lumber is adding about $36,000 to the cost of building a typical single family home. Rental car prices incredibly high if you can find one. There are chlorine shortages for pools. The global chip shortage is halting car assembly lines. Even ketchup packets are in short supply. The oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett, said he sees substantial inflation. 85% of the economy, he says, is in super high gear right now. Fed officials are reluctant to raise interest rates before Main Street is truly recovered. The Fed chief Jerome Powell says while there’s been progress, there’s still work to do."