TOKYO—The Japanese operator of McDonald’s restaurants announced its third price hike in less than a year on Friday in the latest sign of compounding inflationary pressures on the nation’s consumers. McDonald’s Holding Company Japan Ltd. said it would raise prices on about 80 percent of its menu from Jan. 16, citing currency fluctuations as well…

Food prices soared in 2022, and so far there are few solutions on the horizon for 2023. The latest Consumer Price Index Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that grocery prices increased 12 percent in the previous 12 months, far higher than the already elevated inflation rate. The BLS index for wholesale prices…

Travelers hitting the roads home following the Christmas holiday can expect to see gas prices lower than this time last year, but they will be driving on seemingly more dangerous roads. The national average for a gallon of regular gas on Dec. 26 stood at $3.10 per gallon in the United States according to AAA….

Commentary September jobs printed at 263,000 new jobs, somewhat above the consensus estimate of 250,000 jobs. That’s 52,000 fewer jobs  than were created in August 2022 and 161 fewer jobs than September 2021. July revisions added another 11,000 jobs; August was unrevised. It is generally believed that 200,000–250,000 jobs are required to accommodate population growth. The unemployment rate was…

TOKYO—Japan’s McDonald’s fast food restaurants will raise prices on about 60 percent of its offerings to customers, fueled by rising input costs and exchange-rate fluctuations, the company said on Monday. It marks the company’s second set of price increases this year as Japan grapples with inflationary pressures and a slide in the yen to a…

Air travelers are facing more expensive airline tickets due to insufficient jet fuel production, which has dramatically raised costs for airline operations. Ticket prices for flights have risen 25 percent this year, the biggest annual jump since 1989. Airlines have not made much of a profit from higher ticket prices, however, due to rising operational…

Commentary Beef eaters got some good news over the last several days. Prices are starting to relax a bit for the higher-end cuts. They had become so unaffordable over the last six months that even the most devoted fans of New York strip and fancy filets switched to cheaper roasts and ground beef to satisfy…

Online U.S. grocery prices surged year-over-year by 13.4 percent in July, beating the previous records of 12.4 percent in June, 11.7 percent in May, and 10.3 percent in April, according to the Adobe Digital Price Index released on Aug. 9. Before the pandemic, online shopping was long immune to inflation, but since June 2020, online prices have persistently…

LONDON—The United Nations food agency’s world price index declined again in July, edging further away from record highs hit in March. The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 140.9 points last month versus a revised 154.3 for June. The June figure was previously put…

LONDON—Eurozone business activity unexpectedly contracted this month due to an accelerating downturn in manufacturing and a near-stalling of service sector growth as burgeoning costs pushed consumers to cut back on expenditure, a survey showed. S&P Global’s flash Composite Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), seen as a good gauge of overall economic health, fell to 49.4 in…