Inflation Hits Four-Year High as Manufacturing Surges and Automakers Make Headlines
Inflation reaches a four-year high, manufacturing activity accelerates, Apple raises prices, Ford earns top quality honors, and Chevrolet revives a classic campaign.
High Gas Prices Pushed May Inflation to 4-Year High
Statistics released this week by the Commerce Department confirmed what many were thinking: High gas prices helped push inflation to a four-year high last month.
With high gas prices doing the heavy lifting, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index, rose to 4.1% in May, according to multiple media outlets. That was up from 3.8% in April, although, on a monthly basis, it was unchanged at 0.4%. Read Full Article
Manufacturing Boosts Rise in Business Activity
For anyone looking for good business news, here is some: U.S. business activity expanded at the fastest pace in five months.
The rise was bolstered by a surge in demand for manufactured goods. Bloomberg reported that the S&P Global flash composite purchasing managers index rose to 52.2 in June, according to data released Tuesday. Figures above 50 indicate expansion.
The group’s manufacturing gauge rose to 55.7, the highest since May 2022, as factories ramped up production to meet the strongest new orders growth in more than four years. Read Full Article
Apple raises prices of MacBooks, iPads
Apple raised prices on its iPad and MacBook prices on Thursday and blamed the increased on increasing memory and storage chip costs officials say are being driven by the AI industry’s data center build out.
The move does not affect the iPhone. But it would take starting price of the Neo – its lowest priced laptop aimed at winning market share from affordable Windows and Chromebook laptops – from $599 to $699 months after launch. Read Full Article
Ford Tops J.D. Power Initial Quality Study
Ford is the new gold standard for mass market new vehicle quality in America, ranking as the top mainstream brand in the closely watched JD Power 2026 U.S. Initial Quality Study (IQS) — an achievement 16 years in the making.
The company surpassed the industry’s traditional mass market leaders in IQS, climbing from No. 15 in 2023 to No. 1 among mainstream brands in the annual survey of new buyers. Read Full Article
Chevrolet Reintroduces ‘Heartbeat of America’ Campaign
DETROIT – Chevrolet has reintroduced “Heartbeat of America,” a classic advertising campaign from the 1980s and 90s.
Reimagined with the sounds of The Red Clay Strays, a rock band from Mobile, Ala., the campaign takes a modern creative approach while still reminiscent of the original version sung by a beloved Motown artist from Detroit. The song incorporates the real heartbeat sounds of Americans across the country in Texas, Detroit and Kansas as a way to celebrate those who represent the heartbeat of America, and are making an impact in their own communities. Read Full Article