Two-thirds of Americans are cutting back on restaurants and movies, 61% are driving less, four in 10 say they are spending less on restaurants, and a third are using more credit cards as record 40-year inflation hits home
- People are increasingly forgoing Friday night treats like movies and restaurants as inflation seeps into paychecks
- More than 4 in 10 are spending less on groceries, even saving on staples like bread, milk and eggs
- Cash-strapped Americans in Wisconsin, Illinois and Kansas told DailyMail.com the painful cuts they were being forced to make
- A family turns off their lights and air conditioning because energy prices are so high
- Joe Biden’s friendly fist bump with Saudi Petro King Mohammed bin Salman did not immediately result in increased oil supplies
- Do you have a story about how inflation hurts your family? Email james.reinl@mailonline.com
According to a, nearly two-thirds of Americans have scaled back restaurants, movie theaters and other fun evenings opinion poll provides the latest snapshot, such as 40-year high inflation causing widespread economic pain.
About 65 percent of respondents said they spend less on concerts and other types of entertainment, while another 61 percent said they drive less — while the average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline is still over $4.50.
More than 4 in 10 are spending less on groceries, according to the CNBC All-America Economic Survey of 800 people earlier this month, and about a third are using their credit card more often to weather the crisis.
According to another study by NielsenIQ, shoppers spend less on everyday items like bread, eggs and milk, and processed goods like juice boxes. Grain alone has become an incredible 15.1 percent more expensive.
Inflation hit a 40-year high of 9.1 percent last month, according to the government’s consumer price index, as people in the US struggled to make ends meet and complained about the painful cuts they were having to make .
Americans are increasingly forgoing Friday night treats like movies and restaurants as inflation seeps into paychecks
Mark Storti of Avoca, Wisconsin, said his household, with a fixed annual income of about $50,000, spent $4,500 more this year compared to 2021 — mostly due to rising energy, gas and food prices.
“When you live in a rural community and see firsthand the impact on farming families and retirees, it makes you angry and disappointed,” Storti in the Biden administration told DailyMail.com.
Keri Powell, from a suburb of Chicago, Illinois, said she is now shopping for groceries in bulk and family members are left home in the dark and without air conditioning in the summer heat due to high energy prices.
“Many in our family are no longer able to visit each other to cut fuel costs,” Powell said.
“Is anyone in our government looking into this? It doesn’t feel like it.’
Meanwhile, more than a third of Americans forego dental visits as inflation eats away at their savings, according to researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), leading to painful delays in treating everything from abscesses to sore wisdom teeth.
Harsh economic headwinds have impacted President Joe Biden’s approval ratings, which have hit the lowest level of his presidency. In the CNBC poll, just 28 percent approved of Biden’s economic performance, while 63 percent disapproved.
Respondents had a deeply pessimistic outlook on the economy, with 52 percent saying things would get worse before the end of the year and at least 60 percent expecting a recession.
White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein on Sunday conceded that inflation was “unacceptably high,” but he told Fox News it was due to fighting in Ukraine, which has roiled global energy and food prices .
Biden has urged Arab oil producers to increase production and contribute to lower oil prices, but his visit to Saudi Arabia last week and a friendly fist bump with de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman did not immediately secure a public pledge that to pump more crude oil.
Florida Sen. Rick Scott, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, predicted on Sunday that November’s midterm election would be a “democratic bloodbath” because so many Americans were “hurt” from inflation.
President Joe Biden has urged oil producers to increase production and contribute to lower oil prices, but his visit to Saudi Arabia last week and a friendly fist bump with de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman didn’t immediately secure a public commitment to say more to pump crude oil
About 61 percent of Americans drive less today, and the average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline is still over $4.50
US inflation rose to 9.1 percent in June, the highest since 1981 and better than economists had forecast
