How Higher Inflation and Tariffs Impact Your Wallet
Hey everyone, it’s been a week with some pretty significant economic news, and honestly, some of it feels like a bit of a gut punch. Last night on the CBS Evening News, they highlighted a really concerning report: most Americans aren’t earning enough to truly afford a basic quality of life.
Think about that for a second. This isn’t just about scraping by for food and rent anymore. This report factored in things we all rely on, like technology for work and school, healthcare costs, and even childcare. And the bottom 60% of households? It’s out of reach for them. That’s a huge chunk of our country.
Then, adding to the picture, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell was talking about a potential new economic landscape with higher inflation risks. What does that translate to? Well, it likely means interest rates could stay higher for longer.
To help us make sense of all this, CBS brought in Clare Jones, the U.S. Economics Editor for the Financial Times, and she laid it out pretty clearly.
Clare pointed out that Powell’s remarks really show how much things have shifted. Remember not that long ago when the big worry was too little inflation? Now, the Fed is preparing for the possibility of too much. We’ve already seen how recent price hikes have squeezed our wallets, and higher interest rates are likely to keep that pressure on. Say goodbye to those super low interest rates we saw after the 2008 crisis and during the early pandemic days.
So, is this the start of a slippery slope towards a weaker economy, maybe even a recession? It’s the question on everyone’s mind, right?
Clare offered a little bit of a silver lining, mentioning some recent high-level talks between the US and China that led to a significant drop in tariffs on Chinese goods – from a whopping 145% down to 30%. That’s definitely a positive step and should offer some relief.
However, she also cautioned that we’re likely still looking at higher prices and slower economic growth in the coming months. A big part of that is the lingering impact of the tariffs and trade policies from the previous administration.
We even heard how major players like Walmart are expecting to raise prices later this month specifically because of these tariffs. Think about what that means for families already struggling to afford the essentials. As Clare put it, “It’s bad news.”
And it’s not just the big corporations feeling it. Small businesses are echoing these concerns. While the tariff reduction is better, 30% is still a significant cost that will likely be passed on to us, the consumers.
Here’s the kicker: this tariff reduction is only a 90-day pause. So, there’s still a huge cloud of uncertainty hanging over businesses and our everyday spending.
Clare’s final assessment was pretty blunt: “Frankly, we’re still in a worse position than we were at the start of the year. The outlook isn’t a total disaster, but it’s not looking particularly hopeful either.”
It’s a reality check, for sure. It feels like we’re all navigating a tougher economic landscape right now, and these insights from the CBS Evening News and Clare Jones really highlight the challenges many of us are facing. Let’s hope those talks and the tariff adjustments lead to more positive changes down the road.
What are your thoughts on all this? How are you feeling the impact of these economic shifts? Let’s chat in the comments below.
theprint.in/sport/interpol-rep… #cleansport #antidoping #datajournalism
INTERPOL reps at NADA anti-doping workshop on intelligence gathering – ThePrint – PTIFeed
New Delhi, May 16 (PTI) What’s INTERPOL and CBI got to do with an anti-doping workshop? Turns out quite a lot as World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) increasingly prioritises gathering intelligence and in-depth investigation to strike at the source of the…PTI (ThePrint)
Want to know how OpenAI's latest programming AI agent Codex works? In this official OpenAI demonstration, you will see:
Core abilities of Codex: How to connect to GitHub, browse and understand code repositories independently, make code modifications, and automatically generate pull requests (PRs).🧵1/2
RE: threads.com/@luokai/post/DJuVy…
#AI Threads
OpenAI has launched Codex, a software engineering agent that can handle multiple tasks in parallel within isolated sandbox environments. These tasks include writing code, fixing bugs, answering codebase questions, and making pull requests. Codex runs on the cloud and is powered by the optimized o3 model, known as codex-1. It has shown strong performance in SWE-Bench and OpenAI’s internal benchmark tests, generating code in a style similar to humans.🧵1/4openai.com/index/introducing-c…
#AI Threads
New from Julian Barnes, Maggie Haberman and me: Trump Appointee Pressed Analyst to Redo Intelligence on Venezuelan Gang The move followed a disclosure that intelligence agencies disagree with a key factual claim Trump made to invoke a wartime deportation law. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/16/u...
artist: Mathew Brady Studio, active 1844 - 1894
source: National Portrait Gallery
notes: The Frederick Hill Meserve Collection comprises more than five thousand […]
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npg.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.81.M…
We're very happy to announce the very first keynote at #FediForum, ever, by nobody other than science fiction author, activist and journalist extraordinaire Cory Doctorow.
Cory will join us on the first day of FediForum, June 5, to set the context and stage for the energetic and substantive discussions that are sure to follow on how, together, we can and will create the world we all want to live in, on the Open Social Web and beyond.
More info and registration: fediforum.org
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Reeves Faces Call From Her Local Party to Abandon Disability Cuts
https://www.bloomberg.com/en/news/thp/2025-05-17/rachel-reeves-faces-call-from-her-local-labour-party-to-abandon-welfare-cuts?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub
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Are we to believe anything the government tells us?
By Ron Hart
July 28, 2024
"but slurring gay women or men is just as unacceptable"
I think the word you're not willing to say is probably worse
Just a thought
RE: threads.com/@bronze495/post/DJ…
Preston Huckabee (@bronze495) on Threads
In my presence I have let them know. But does it matter? How acceptable is using the Nword in public discourse? Well lately itll win you a million bucks. But sluring gay women or men is just as unacceptable. And should be called out.Threads
Bezuidenhout and the Consone Quartet play Mayer and Mozart in Schwetzingen - Schedule // - www.worldconcerthall.com
SWR Schwetzingen Festival. Kristian Bezuidenhout, fortepiano, and the Consone Quartet play: Emilie MAYER: String Quartet in G major. MOZART: Concerto No. 13 in C major, K. 415, arranged/ Piano Quintet in E-flat major, K. 452, arranged.www.worldconcerthall.com
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U.S. President Donald Trump said he still believes Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to strike a deal to end the war in Ukraine, but warned that if negotiations fail, his administration will move forward with sanctions against Moscow.
kyivindependent.com/this-is-tu…
#Ukraine #Russia #US #Trump #Putin
'This is turkey time' — Trump vows sanctions on Moscow if peace talks fail, says Putin is 'tired' of war
"Honestly, I will (impose sanctions), if we're not gonna make a deal," Trump told Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview published on May 16. "This would be crushing for Russia because they're having a hard time now with the economy."Olena Goncharova (The Kyiv Independent)
With sales tanking because its CEO went full “Roman Salute”, the stock price can only defy gravity for so long. So Tesla is already making changes to stave off the inevitable shareholder lawsuits.
cnbc.com/2025/05/16/tesla-limi…
Tesla limits investors' ability to sue over breach of fiduciary duties
Tesla announced a change to its corporate bylaws that will limit shareholders ability to sue the company.Lora Kolodny (CNBC)
@tchambers Holy crap.
So the company unilaterally instituted a policy of “only shareholders with 3% or more stake in the company can bring suit” - so now, nobody with less than $30 billion in company stock can sue them.
Funny world where literal billionaires can be “too poor to have any legally recognized opinion”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that during meetings with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte he intends to complain to him about Ukraine's "unacceptable" actions.
eurointegration.com.ua/news/20…
#Ukraine #Russia #NATO #EU #Hungary #Rutte #Orban
Орбан збирається скаржитись генсеку НАТО на Україну
Прем’єр-міністр Угорщини Віктор Орбан заявив, що в ході зустрічей з генсеком НАТО Марком Рютте збирається поскаржитись йому на “неприйнятні” дії України.Європейська правда
Well, color me surprised.
Consumer Reports investigation finds Kroger stores have been overcharging shoppers on sale items.
amazon.com/dp/B07RL92GX8?ref=t…
Cinnamon fern, furled.
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La polizia municipale di Porcari conquista l’encomio della Regione
Un riconoscimento per le assistenti scelte Vaiani e Giuntoli che avevano aiutato un anziano disorientato a ritrovare la via di casa
Russia’s largest agricultural machinery maker #Rostselmash said Friday it will place all 15,000 of its employees on leave for the month of June due to collapsing exports and continued market contraction.
themoscowtimes.com/2025/05/16/…
Farm Equipment Giant Rostselmash to Furlough 15K Workers Amid Slumping Sales
Russia’s largest agricultural machinery maker Rostselmash said Friday it will place all 15,000 of its employees on leave for the month of June due to collapsing exports and continued market contraction.The Moscow Times
📰 Drummer Josh Freese na twee jaar weer weg bij Foo Fighters
🕓 04:00 | RTL Nieuws
🔸 #Geslagen #USA #Drummer #Instagram
Drummer Josh Freese na twee jaar weer weg bij Foo Fighters
Drummer Josh Freese heeft zijn laatste beat geslagen voor Foo Fighters. De 52-jarige Amerikaan deelt op Instagram dat hij en de band een andere kant opgaan.RTL Boulevard
Talks In Istanbul Unlikely To Produce Results - Oriental Review
There is clearly a split over a Ukraine settlement. The Germans, British and French, who are the main NATO and EU powers, oppose a deal.Stephen Bryen (Oriental Review)
Inadimplência de Empresas no Brasil Atinge Novo Recorde Histórico, Aponta Serasa Experian - Gazeta Brasil-
O número de empresas inadimplentes no Brasil alcançou um novo patamar recorde em março deste ano, atingindo a marca de 7,3 milhões de negócios com dívidas emGazeta Brasil
Enter the #Fediverse
privacyinternational.org/long-…
Enter the Fediverse
If you’ve ever used TikTok, Instagram, or X/Twitter, you will already be familiar with centralised social media.Centralised social media means big company owns the app, controls the software, and keeps all your data.Privacy International
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