High inflation or ... high inflation?

Marketplace

News, Business

4.6 • 8.6K Ratings

🗓️ 24 June 2026

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When the U.S. launched a war against Iran, some Wall Street traders bet the ensuing energy shortages would push inflation up. Now that a ceasefire has brought down gas prices, the narrative has shifted: What if cheaper gas fires up the economy too much? In this episode, the markets are betting on inflation, whichever way you slice it. Plus: Prospective buyers struggle to secure mortgages on homes worth less than $100,000, local getaways anticipate healthy summer vacation demand, and direct-to-consumer brands reframe their environmental commitments.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	There's a lot going on right now. Mounting economic inequality, threats to democracy, environmental disaster, the sour stench of chaos in the air.
0:11.2	I'm Brooke Gladstone, host of WNYC's On the Media. Want to understand the reasons and the meanings of the narratives that led us here, and maybe how to head them off at
0:22.3	the pass, that's on the media's specialty. Take a listen wherever you get your podcasts.
0:31.4	The program today, honestly, it's all about you. From American Public Media, this is Marketclass.
0:45.9	In Los Angeles, I'm Kyle, Risdell.
0:52.4	It is Wednesday, today, the 24th day of June. Good as always to have you along, everybody.
0:58.2	We've got some data coming this week, May inflation in the form of the personal consumption expenditures price index. That is tomorrow.
1:05.7	And then on Friday, the University of Michigan's Index of Consumer Sentiment. And that, which is to say consumers,
1:12.0	which is to say us, is where we are going to start with Heather Long. She's the chief
1:16.4	economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, also one of our Friday regulars. Hi, Heather.
1:20.5	Hi, Kai. Glad to be back. So look, somebody wakes you up at 2 o'clock in the morning from a dead
1:25.6	sleep and says, Heather, what is the mood of
1:28.2	the American consumer? And without having a chance to check any of your data, what would you say?
1:33.3	Well, I think after I maybe sock them, I would probably say the mood is still really gloomy.
1:43.7	And I think the big thing that's going on that people are missing
1:47.0	is while a lot of the consumption data still looks pretty darn robust, there's this massive
1:53.1	psychological tax on the middle class right now where they feel and they have to financially
1:59.6	make every dollar stretch to the furthest possible.
2:04.2	And that's why the sentiment is so low. It's this, I got to find the cheapest gas station in town.
2:10.0	I need to reset my thermostat so my electric bill isn't soaring again. And I need to shift my
2:16.2	spending from the nice grocery store to the warehouse or the
2:20.4	discount store. It's that pressure people feel to be able to even do what they were doing
	...

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