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87% of Americans are reporting that they experience some form of financial stress because of inflation, according to a recent poll.
The poll, from the Washington Post and George Mason University Schar School of Policy and Government, surveyed over 1,000 participants from April 21 to May 12 and revealed how people were feeling amid prices continuing to rise on everyday goods. With prices rising due to inflation that has been caused in part by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues, participants were asked “how much, if at all, have recent price increases been a financial stress on your household?”
50% reported “minor financial stress” while 37% reported experiencing “major financial stress.” Only 13% answered that they experienced “no financial stress.” People also reported that they expect “the situation with rising prices” to get worse over the next year, with 66% stating it would get worse, 30% expecting it to get “much worse” and 36% expecting it to get “somewhat worse.”
Meanwhile, 12% of respondents felt the situation would stay the same, 21% said it would get better, 14% said it would get somewhat better and 7% felt it would get “much better.” 1% had “no opinion” on that matter.
Other recent polls also reflected similar results, suggesting that people have changed their spending habits to deal with the effects of rising prices.
While Axios notes that Americans are usually pessimistic when it comes to inflation, consumers predict that in a year consumer prices will be 5.4% higher than normal. That percentage of increase is higher than the Cleveland Fed’s estimate that consumer prices will be 3.6% higher. As of April, the inflation rate in the U.S. was at 8.3%, down from 8.5% in March.
This means that while Americans are pessimistic, many of them predict that the rate of inflation will be lower in a year’s time compared to now.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (pictured May 2022) said she was ‘wrong’ in her prediction about inflation
Photo: AFP / Ina Fassbender
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