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High prices are prompting consumers to reduce or trade down on many everyday goods they purchase. For some this allows them to splurge on other items. “I may be wearing scratchy Amazon pajamas to bed, but at least my ($600 Italian linen) sheets are lovely,” said Davina Pike Ogilvie, a mother of two from Brooklyn,…

The rate of inflation has continued to slow for six straight months, dropping to 6.5 percent from nine percent last June. Lower prices at the pump and other savings have some feeling hopeful about their own personal finances. Risks of further inflation remain, however, which has economists looking to the Federal Reserve Bank and whether…

Some consumers are tired of tipping wait staff, particularly for pickup and drive-thru orders, and question why their employers are not paying higher wages. Tips at full-service restaurants grew by 25.3 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2022 and 16.7 percent at quick or counter-service restaurants, according to Square.

Demand is growing for plant-based clothing from brands such as Unless, which claims to be “the first streetwear brand to create products that will harmlessly decompose at the end of life.” Eric Liedtke, CEO of Unless, said, “We started the company because we’re a bunch of fashion executives that got tired of the make, take…

Consumer Reports has called on Hershey, Mondelez, Theo Chocolate and Trader Joe’s to reduce the amount of lead and cadmium in their dark chocolate products. Long-term exposure to these metals can cause immune system suppression, kidney damage and nervous system issues.

Mars is swapping out its “spokescandies” for Maya Rudolph after getting caught up in a right wing-created controversy about the wokeness of its animated figures. The candy brand will run a commercial doing the Super Bowl with the seven animated characters in silhouettes on a football field.

Three former Whole Foods employees claimed in a lawsuit that they were discriminated against when the grocer fired them for refusing to remove the “Black Lives Matter” facemasks that they were wearing on the job. A federal judge yesterday dismissed those charges, ruling that “the evidence demonstrates only that Whole Foods did not strenuously enforce…

Newell Brands, the parent company of Rubbermaid and Sharpie, plans to cut 13 percent of its office staff by the end of the year. Newell had 32,000 employees at the end of 2022.

Kroger and Albertsons argue that a merger of the supermarket giants will lead to lower prices and other benefits for consumers. Many question, however, if Kroger and Albertsons are painting a realistic picture. Opposition to the deal is real, and organized.

UPS and 350,000 of its workers are looking at a potential strike this summer if the delivery service and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters fail to hammer out a new labor contract. Amazon.com is UPS’s largest customer. About 40 percent of the UPS workers affected are drivers. UPS posted record profits in 2022.