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Consumer Prices Take Biggest Dip in 59 Years

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 14, 2009 1:10 PM CDT

(Newser) – Consumer prices have fallen 2.1% over the past year, the biggest year-over-year decline in 59 years, the Labor Department announced today. Though the Consumer Price Index was unchanged from June to July, it was drastically lower than in July 2008, when oil peaked at $147 a barrel and gas cost $4.11 per gallon, the Washington Post reports. Economists fear dropping prices are a sign of deflation.

Deflation can be even more dangerous than inflation, because falling prices often bring wages down with them, creating a vicious downward spiral. The slackening of the domestic economy reflects a worldwide slowdown, the New York Times reports. "The inflation story was nonsense in an environment where you have such wild excess capacity globally," says an economist. "I think inflation is below 2% for the next 2 years."

Chart shows the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index from the prior month, seasonally adjusted, from July 2008 to July 2009.
Chart shows the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index from the prior month, seasonally adjusted, from July 2008 to July 2009.
Sale signs adorn the door of an Urban Outfitters retailer on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif., Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009.
Sale signs adorn the door of an Urban Outfitters retailer on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif., Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009.   (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 6 comments
So_Cal_Larry
Aug 16, 2009 12:48 PM CDT
What is this prayer crap, anyway? It's nothing more than the mind speaking to the mind. Except, of course, for the wingnuts of religion who would have you believe that they have some private line to some superior being who tells them to tell you what to do, and how much to contribute.
IndependentThinker
Aug 14, 2009 8:35 AM CDT
@Citrixguy: And as you can see shrub took office with money and in 2 years tanked it. Those are the only facts of your graph. Once Shrub drove the care into a wall (drunk driving again, this time on power instead of his usual wild turkey) he handed the keys off and all of his friends pointed at the new driver, Obama, and said; "Wtf man, your wrecking the car. What are you Hitler. Your not even from our country. And I bet you want us to pay the hospital bills of all those people that we hit on the way."
rajanKazhmin
Aug 14, 2009 6:37 AM CDT
@Jayster999: It's not healthy for a person of your age to still have imaginary friends. Do you still believe in the tooth fairy as well?

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