HOLD THREE MORE OF THESE EVENTS ACROSS THE STATE.
IN ECONOMIC NEWS AND THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN, WHAT IS
THE DISCONNECT BETWEEN LOWERED INFLATION, LOW UNEMPLOYMENT AND
HIGHER WAGES AND CONSUMERS WHO FEEL THE PAIN OF HIGH COSTS AT
THE CHECKOUT AND THEN BLAME THE CURRENT BIDEN ADMINISTRATION,
LONGING FOR WHAT THEY BELIEVE TO BE THE HALCYON DAYS OF TRUMP.
WE TRIED TO UNPACK THIS NOW WITH CHIEF ANALYST AT THE CENTER FOR
BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC INSIGHT AT UW STEVENS POINT, KEVIN BAHR.
PROFESSOR, THANK YOU FOR BEING >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME BACK,
FREDERICA. >> SO BY IMPORTANT MEASURES, THE
ECONOMY IS STRONG. WHY AREN'T AVERAGE CONSUMERS
FEELING IT, IF THEY AREN'T? >> HUH.
COMPLEX QUESTION, BUT I THINK THE BIG, PROBABLY, STICKING
POINT FOR SOME PEOPLE IN TERMS OF NOT FEELING THE STRENGTH OF
THE ECONOMY, THE STRENGTH OF THE STOCK MARKET, HAS BASICALLY BEEN
FOOD PRICES. FOOD PRICES ARE UP
SIGNIFICANTLY, IF YOU LOOK OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS, THEY HAVE
RISEN ABOUT 26% IN THE UNITED STATES AND THAT FOOD PRICE, I
MEAN, IT'S TOUGH BECAUSE WHEN FOOD PRICES GO UP, IT'S NOT LIKE
YOU CAN AVOID BUYING FOOD. IT'S SOMETHING THAT EVERYBODY
NEEDS, AND PARTICULARLY FOR LOWER AND MIDDLE INCOME
AMERICANS, THAT TAKES UP A BIGGER PORTION OF YOUR OVERALL
BUDGET, SO IT REALLY HITS LOWER INCOME MIDDLE AMERICANS HARD.
THAT BEING SAID, IT'S BEEN GLOBAL FACTORS THAT HAVE
INCREASED GLOBAL FOOD PRICES AND THAT INCLUDES ANYTHING FROM
PUTIN INVADING THE UKRAINE, WHICH CAUSED WHEAT PRICES TO
RAISE 50%, THE CRANE AND RUSSIA ACCOUNT FOR ABOUT 25% OF GLOBAL
WHEAT EXPORTS, AGRICULTURAL FERTILIZER SPIKED.
RUSSIA IS THE NUMBER ONE EXPORTER OF AGRICULTURAL
FERTILIZER. THEN YOU THROW IN LININGS LIKE E
THE AVIAN FLEW, LABOR COSTS ARE UP, IT'S A GLOBAL THING.
>> SO IT'S NOT, AS SOME WOULD STRONGLY SUGGEST, QUOTE,
CORPORATE GREED WHERE PROFITS ARE UP OVER40%?
>> WELL, YOU CAN ARGUE THAT THAT PLAYS INTO IT.
I MEAN, THAT WOULD BE ONE OF THE FACTORS.
GLOBAL PROFITS ARE BASICALLY AT RECORD LEVELS.
BACK IN 2022, THEY BACKED UP A LITTLE BIT, BUT THEY'RE STILL
OFF SIGNIFICANTLY, SAY, RELATIVE TO 2019, SO THAT PLAYS INTO IT,
BUT THEN YOU ALSO GET INTO WHAT CAN BE DONE TO LESSEN INDUSTRY
CONCENTRATION IN SOME AREAS OF THE FOOD INDUSTRY, AND THAT'S
KIND OF A LONG-TERM THING. YOUR NOT GOING TO BE SETTLING
THAT OVERNIGHT. >> SO I READ A SAYING THAT
PRICES RISE LIKE A ROCKET AND FALL LIKE A FEATHER.
IS THAT WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE OR HAVE MARKET FORCES KIND OF
CHANGED MORE SIGNIFICANTLY? >> WELL, IT'S SORT OF A
COMBINATION. PRICES TYPICALLY GO UP A LOT
EASIER THAN WHAT THEY COME DOWN. YOU GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE
HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES, PRICES IN A GIVEN MONTH OVERALL,
DON'T REALLY COME DOWN TOO OFTEN, BUT, AGAIN, WITH KIND OF
THE RECENT, KIND OF THE RECENT RUN UP IN COSTS, PRODUCTION
COSTS ARE UP, TRANSPORTATION COSTS ARE UP, LABOR COSTS ARE
UP. SO IT'S A LOT HARDER TO GET
PRICES TO COME DOWN. SOME PRODUCTS, YES.
THERE'S GOING TO BE PRODUCTION EVACUATION IN SOME PRODUCTS, BUT
THE OVERALL PRICE LEVEL, IT'S TOUGH TO DRIVE DOWN.
>> WHAT IS CONTRIBUTING TO PEOPLE FEELING LIKE THE ECONOMY
IS BAD FOR THEM? >> YOU CAN LOOK AT THE HOUSING
MARKET. HOUSING'S BEEN TOUGH IN A LOT OF
THE INCREASE IN, FOR EXAMPLE, HOUSING PRICES WENT UP ABOUT --
THE INCREASE IN HOUSING PRICES IN THE FIRST THREE YEARS OF THIS
DECADE MATCHED THE INCREASE IN HOUSING PRICES OVER THE ENTIRE
LAST DECADE, AND THAT HAS REALLY BEEN DRIVEN BY THE DROP IN
SUPPLY, WHICH STARTED TO OCCUR IN 2020.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE OVERALL LISTINGS, AVAILABLE HOUSING,
THAT HAS INCREASED CERTAINLY CONTRIBUTED SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE
COST OF HOUSING AND HOUSING PRICES.
SO BETWEEN COST OF HOUSING AND FOOD PRICES, THOSE ARE THE BIG
STICKING POINTS FOR THE ECONOMY. >> SO HOW MUCH IS POLITICAL
MESSAGING CONTRIBUTING TO CONSUMERS ' ATTITUDES ABOUT THER
OWN ECONOMIC WELL-BEING? >> I THINK POLITICAL MESSAGING
PLAYS A BIG FACTOR. LET ME THROW SOMETHING OUT JUST
SO WE KIND OF HIT BOTH SIDES OF THE AISLE, IF YOU WILL.
THE GLOBAL PRICE OF OIL TANKED FROM $70 TO ABOUT $25 A BARREL
ON THE FIRST HALF OF 2020. SO OIL COMPANIES CUT THEIR
PRODUCTION, LOWERED THEIR LEVELS OF INVENTORY.
YOU COULDN'T BLAME TRUMP FOR THE REDUCTION IN OIL PRODUCTION.
AND THERE'S GLOBAL FACTORS AT PLAY AS FAR AS FOOD PRICES.
I DON'T THINK BIDEN SHOULD BE BLAMED FOR THAT.
THE ONLY THING YOU COULD SAY CONTRIBUTE TO THAT, WE'VE HAD A
VERY STRONG ECONOMY, STRONG DEMAND, STRONG JOB MARKET.
YOU HAVE PEOPLE WORKING. IF YOU HAD UNIMPLEMENT AT 10%
VERSUS 4%, THAT WOULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE OVERALL