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Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

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Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#4
Incredible that there's not even a mention of monetary policy.

Are they proposing that corporations suddenly became greedy in 2020? During previous periods of low inflation, did they congratulate those corporations for their altruism in keeping prices low?

Money is subject to the same laws of supply and demand as everything else, and when there's more of it, it's less valuable.

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#5
post #3

It does really feel like the cat is out of the bag that producers anywhere in the supply chain of housing and food realized they could do whatever they want and we can all suck wind. Every significant expense I have is up more than 40% in the past two years.

Yup mine too and on top of that everything has gotten smaller and shittier in quality too.

I really wish they would have met the banks collapse. That would have done wonders for fixing this inflation. Nope us wage slaves will continue to lose.

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#6
post #3

It does really feel like the cat is out of the bag that producers anywhere in the supply chain of housing and food realized they could do whatever they want and we can all suck wind. Every significant expense I have is up more than 40% in the past two years.

Competition is supposed to drive prices down to the equilibrium level. Why is it not happening? Are produces colluding to fix prices? Why new players are not entering the market to take advantage of higher prices?

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#7
A related question which I'm curious about: Suppose you own a well-diversified investment portfolio, work a job, and consume a relatively typical mix of goods and services -- what's the point (e.g. a ratio of how much you have in equities to how much you spend per month) where the "typical" margin-increasing price hike benefits you overall? In other terms, if this pattern of behavior results in a transfer from consumers to owners, what kinds of people are at the equilibrium point, where your lost purchasing power from price increases is exactly matched by increased value of one's investments caused by fatter margins?

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#8
post #3

It does really feel like the cat is out of the bag that producers anywhere in the supply chain of housing and food realized they could do whatever they want and we can all suck wind. Every significant expense I have is up more than 40% in the past two years.

Competition is supposed to drive prices down to the equilibrium level. Why is it not happening? Are produces colluding to fix prices? Why new players are not entering the market to take advantage of higher prices?

You're so close.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalist_Realism

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#9
post #3

It does really feel like the cat is out of the bag that producers anywhere in the supply chain of housing and food realized they could do whatever they want and we can all suck wind. Every significant expense I have is up more than 40% in the past two years.

Competition is supposed to drive prices down to the equilibrium level. Why is it not happening? Are produces colluding to fix prices? Why new players are not entering the market to take advantage of higher prices?

Housing has almost nothing to do with markets because Anglo countries run it by central planning. So they can't enter.

Construction is pretty high where it's been allowed.

As for food, it has fallen - eggs were high earlier this year and now aren't. This is mostly driven by gas prices and the occasional animal pandemic.

Re: Profit-Price Spiral: Excess Profits Fuelling Inflation, Not Wages

#10
post #4

Incredible that there's not even a mention of monetary policy. Are they proposing that corporations suddenly became greedy in 2020? During previous periods of low inflation, did they congratulate those corporations for their altruism in keeping prices low? Money is subject to the same laws of supply and demand as everything else, and when there's more of it, it's less valuable.

Yes corps are greedy all the sudden. This is why the Great Financial Crisis is referred to in academic circles as the "Great Generosity" because deflation occurred.
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