I STILL keep hearing that consumer spending is being driven by “stimulus checks from the pandemic”. Anyone spouting that bullshit is either a liar or completely out of touch with reality. Over 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. A truly horrifying statistic btw but I digress. Those stimulus funds were probably gone as soon as they cleared the bank. There were absolutely some shortages that led to price increases.There was/is also a shit ton of price gouging going on.