I'm Coy Wells for U.S. Money Reserve. Despite recent declines in the pace of inflation, costs are still growing at an elevated rate and the price of many goods remain high. Even government officials admit inflation is still a problem that needs to be addressed. In a television appearance on July 17th of 2023, Jared Bernstein, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said, “No victory laps, no mission accomplished. Our work is not done.”
In the past year, we've seen inflation reach 40 year highs and the effects are still apparent in places like the grocery store. For example, prices for items for the so-called center or middle of the grocery store, dry goods, like cereal or cookies, household items, like toilet paper and soap, have increased by nearly 30% since the beginning of 2019, according to the Circana Market Research Firm.
Many of these items are essential that households buy frequently, making their impact on consumer spending hard to avoid. During Walmart's earnings call in May, the company's chief executive said that continued price increases in dry goods and other middle of the store products were pressuring the company and its customers. More recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that grocery prices in general were over 5.5% higher in June of 2023 than they were just one year earlier, when inflation was already running at over 9%.
Consumers looking to protect their wealth against the ongoing effects of inflation may want to consider adding physical precious metals like gold to their portfolios. Gold has long been considered a popular choice as a hedge against inflation. This precious metal has a long historical track record of retaining its purchasing power, and, according to the data from the World Gold Council released earlier this year, gold has outperformed inflation by an average of 3% per year over the past four decades.
Gold also exists outside of the traditional banking system and is independent from paper based assets like stocks, making it an ideal choice for many Americans looking to protect their portfolios from sudden shifts or drops in financial markets. To learn more about the benefits of owning physical gold and to receive your free gold information kit, call U.S. Money Reserve and speak to one of our dedicated account executives today.
