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Services

We're saving less. Will we spend less?

by Sabri Ben-Achour
Jun 14, 2022
After reaching a record high of nearly 34% early in the pandemic, the savings rate has dipped below its pre-pandemic level.
Travelers board a train in Washington, D.C. Partially fueled by pent-up demand for services, consumers are spending down their savings.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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Consumers are spending on services again as the pandemic shopping spree for goods cools

by Sabri Ben-Achour
May 31, 2022
People want to get outside and do stuff, not just buy stuff. That's reflected in surging travel bookings — and airfare.
Consumers are still spending on big-ticket, durable goods like furniture. But now demand for services is picking up again.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
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Consumers have shifted spending away from goods and toward services

by Justin Ho
May 26, 2022
But they'll shift back when goods they want — like cars — become available.
Consumers experiencing economic difficulties may cut back on expenses like dining out, says Washington Post personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary.
Jeenah Moon/Getty Images
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Small businesses that provide services face a pricing dilemma

by Savannah Peters
Mar 31, 2022
Customers are coming back to businesses like restaurants and day spas, but with costs going up, how much should businesses charge?
Restaurants, spas and other service businesses are adjusting their prices to cope with supply chain issues and inflation.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
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Inflation's already increasing the cost of goods. The cost of services could be next.

by Justin Ho
Feb 22, 2022
The services sector has been feeling the pinch of higher costs, particularly when it comes to wages.
Wages for workers in service industries like catering and child care have gone up in the tight labor market.
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
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Will inflated prices come back down? Mostly no.

by Sabri Ben-Achour
Feb 8, 2022
When conditions leading to inflation ease, don't get your hopes up that prices will go the other way.
The prices of things that tend to be volatile, like energy, may dip when the factors that cause inflation ease. But goods like clothing or home appliances? Probably not so much.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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The U.S. economy tries to find its happy place

by Lily Jamali
Jan 5, 2022
IHS Markit's Purchasing Managers' Indexes for services and manufacturing are a mixed bag.
Observers have attributed freight trains' service shortfalls to both pandemic-related stresses and cost-cutting to please investors.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty images
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What consumer spending can tell us about the economic recovery

by Marielle Segarra
Apr 28, 2021
The numbers are a snapshot of March, when many Americans were spending freshly received stimulus checks.
This Friday's consumer spending numbers will mostly be based on the experience economy, which includes services like bars, hair salons and theaters.
Gabriel Kuchta/Getty Images
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We're buying a lot more stuff these days

by Marielle Segarra
Feb 26, 2021
Money can’t buy happiness, but that’s never stopped anyone from trying.
Spending on goods has gone up during the pandemic, but you can get your kids only so many trampolines.
Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images
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For U.S. travelers to the U.K. and the eurozone, currency conversion conundrum

by Judith Kogan
Aug 22, 2018
U.S. travelers to the U.K. and the eurozone face two currency hurdles: calculating pound and euro prices in dollars, and dealing with the higher cost of goods and services over there. How do they cope? With a little magical thinking.  Click the audio player above to hear the full story. 
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