Back in 2021, I ordered a 42-inch pool cue so that the youngsters could enjoy the landlord’s pool table:
They’re getting taller and we’ve moved to an 8′ table (see Buying a pool table) so they’re overdue for a longer cue. Out of curiosity, I went back to the retailer’s site and found the same American-made McDermott K97B cue. The price has gone up 40 percent to $105:
(Actually, the market-clearing price is presumably higher than $105 because the cue is out of stock whereas it was in stock for immediate shipment when I ordered back in 2021. For a proper understanding of inflation we also need to adjust for availability because an item that one must order weeks or months in advance isn’t as valuable as an item that will be delivered as soon as needed. See Is inflation already at 15-30 percent if we hold delivery time constant? (2021).)
What does the official government CPI calculator say about inflation since August 2021? The $75 item should cost $86 if the government numbers are accurate.
(The Chinese-made Vector cue that I got for myself has gone up to $126, representing inflation of roughly 17 percent. That’s reasonably consistent with China’s low inflation rate over the past three years combined with high American inflation for the retailer’s services, domestic shipping, etc.)
Too many animals are gaming the inflation targeting system by putting all their money in the 1 thing that’s rising (housing) & avoiding the thing that’s falling (labor). Lions have pondered the chances of inflation targeting getting abandoned & how they would do it. 1 thing can’t forever rise while everything else falls.