美国国家公共电台 NPR--Families are continuing to have to deal with the effects of inflation

Families are continuing to have to deal with the effects of inflation

Transcript¹

Falling gasoline prices are expected to put a dent² in the latest inflation rate. But other costs, such as housing, continue to climb, putting a strain on many family budgets.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Last month, falling prices at the gas pump gave consumers some relief from the highest inflation in four decades. Thing is, though, other costs continue to climb, outpacing wage gains and putting a strain on many family budgets. NPR's Scott Horsley has been talking with families about how they're dealing³ with inflation. And he's joins us now with details of today's cost-of-living report.

Scott, annual inflation back in June hit 9.1%. How did July shape out?

SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE⁴: Annual inflation cooled a bit last month. It was 8.5% in July. That's still high but down from June's rate. Remember, June was the month when gasoline prices hit a record high, above $5 a gallon. And since that time, the price at the pump has dropped by about a dollar. We also saw a drop last month in air fares and the price of used cars. But, as you mention, other costs are still going up.

In particular, the cost of housing has gotten so high in Pennsylvania, where Spencer Sutton lives, he and his wife were forced to move in with Spencer's mother.

SPENCER SUTTON: As a 30-year-old millennial⁵, I did not think that I would still be living with my mom - with my brother, my wife and her, you know? It's not what I had envisioned. And it's certainly not the most ideal arrangement. But with what's going on in today's day and age, we have to do what we have to do.

HORSLEY: And housing prices tend to be stickier than gasoline prices, which bounce up and down a lot. If you take out those volatile⁶ categories of food and energy, so-called core inflation in July was unchanged, at 5.9%.

MART?NEZ: All right. So how are people coping with these rising prices?

HORSLEY: In some cases, they're buying less - you know, cutting back on meat and buying more ramen, for example. Of course, there are limits to how much you can economize⁷ when it comes to rent or the electric bill.

Penelope Valdespino got a raise this year when she switched from a retail⁸ job to a post at the school district in San Antonio. But that extra income is just being gobbled up, she says, by the rising costs of groceries and utilities.

PENELOPE VALDESPINO: I finally moved over to a different job where, yes, I'm going to be getting paid $3 to $4 more an hour. That's awesome⁹. You know, but still, for me to catch up and keep everything in order is still a challenge in this climate right now.

HORSLEY: And a lot of people are in that same boat. You know, on average, prices are still climbing faster than wages. So people have been drawing down savings¹⁰, putting more of their spending on credit cards and, in some cases, just getting by with less.

MART?NEZ: All right. So what does all this mean for the Federal Reserve's effort to curb¹¹ inflation?

HORSLEY: Well, the Fed is likely going to keep raising interest rates pretty aggressively when it next meets in September. The Fed is trying to tamp¹² down demand and get prices back under control. That effort did get a little more challenging last week when we learned that employers had added more than half a million jobs in July. Of course, more jobs is good, but it also means half a million more paychecks, and that means more demand and more upward pressure on prices. Now, the Fed did get some good news this week in the form of a new survey which showed that people think inflation's going to be significantly lower a year or three years from now than they were thinking back in June.

And Diane Swonk, who's chief economist¹³ with KPMG, thinks that change in attitude is all about that big drop in gas prices.

DIANE SWONK: It's something we all see. Even if you don't drive, you walk by or you drive by a gas station. It's something we all notice front and center every single day.

HORSLEY: So, A, cheaper gasoline can affect people's attitudes as well as their pocketbooks. And this is something that the Federal Reserve does keep a close eye on - consumer expectations - because, you know, the psychology¹⁴ of where people think inflation's going can actually influence where prices actually end up.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Scott Horsley.

Scott, thanks for the clarity.

HORSLEY: You're welcome.

(SOUNDBITE OF PINK FLOYD SONG, "MONEY")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 dent   

n.凹痕，凹坑；初步进展

参考例句：

• I don't know how it came about but I've got a dent in the rear of my car.我不知道是怎么回事，但我的汽车后部有了一个凹痕。
• That dent is not big enough to be worth hammering out.那个凹陷不大，用不着把它锤平。

3 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 millennial   

一千年的，千福年的

参考例句：

• Both Russia and America looked to the future to fulfill their millennial expectations. 俄国和美国都把实现他们黄金时代的希望寄托于未来。
• The millennial generation is celebrating the global commons every day, apparently unmindful of Hardin's warning. 千禧一代显然对哈丁的警告不以为然，每天都在颂扬全球“公地”。

6 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

7 economize   

v.节约，节省

参考例句：

• We're going to have to economize from now on. 从现在开始，我们不得不节约开支。
• We have to economize on water during the dry season. 我们在旱季不得不节约用水。

8 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

9 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

10 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

11 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

12 tamp   

v.捣实，砸实

参考例句：

• Then I tamp down the soil with the back of a rake.然后我用耙子的背将土壤拍实。
• Philpott tamped a wad of tobacco into his pipe.菲尔波特往烟斗里塞了一卷碎烟叶。

13 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

14 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。