48Skid

  The short answer: grocery prices are still rising, just more slowly than before — and a slower rise does not bring prices back down. In September 2026, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that food-at-home prices rose 1.8 percent from a year earlier and fell 0.1 percent from August. That is a cooling rate, not a cheaper grocery bill, and it explains much of why the checkout total still stings. What September's CPI report actually says The September 2026 Consumer Price Index release, published October 14, 2026, puts grocery inflation in context: All items rose 3.7 percent over the year and 0.6 percent over the month. Food overall rose 2.5 percent over the year and was unchanged over the month. Food at home — groceries — rose 1.8 percent over the year and fell 0.1 percent over the month. Food away from home — restaurants — rose 3.5 percent over the year and 0.2 percent over the month. Gasoline jumped 9.1 percent over the month and accounted for more than half of the ...

The headline unemployment rate is a fraction: the number of people counted as unemployed, divided by the number of people in the labor force. It comes from a monthly household survey, not from a count of unemployment benefit claims. That distinction explains most of the confusion about the number — and why it can move in ways that do not match what job seekers feel. The headline rate alone misses three groups: people who stopped looking for work, people who want a job but are not currently searching, and people working part time only because full-time work was not available. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes wider measures alongside the headline rate, and reading them together gives a fuller picture. It starts with a survey, not a benefits list The BLS measures unemployment through the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly household survey conducted with the U.S. Census Bureau. It has run every month since 1940. Each month, Census Bureau interviewers contact abou...