Candy makers face steep cocoa prices, get creative

Dried cocoa beans at the Somos Cacao farm and production facility in Ragonvalia, Norte de Santader department, Colombia, on Friday, March 22, 2024.  Ferley Ospina | Bloomberg | Getty Images There’s pricing pressure taking hold of a specific corner of global agriculture — and it’s bittersweet. Prices of cocoa have more than tripled over the … Read more

Walmart hometown Bentonville Arkansas gets more expensive

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — When Gil Curren’s family moved into a run-down farmhouse in Walmart’s hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas, in 1971, the now-retail giant wasn’t yet a decade old. Sometimes, the nearby creek would flood, and cows would break loose onto the dirt road in front of his home. Now, when the 88-year-old retiree looks outside … Read more

What we know about the consumer so far

A customer walks through The Home Depot store on February 20, 2024 in Austin, Texas.  Brandon Bell | Getty Images The state of the consumer in 2024 is already taking shape — even before the country’s major retailers begin to report first-quarter earnings, starting with Home Depot and Walmart next week. There are signs that … Read more

Weight loss drug patients spend less on restaurants, takeout: survey

A food delivery messenger carries a take out bag outside aSweetgreen in Manhattan on September 14, 2023. Jeenah Moon | The Washington Post | Getty Images A highly popular group of weight loss and diabetes drugs is decreasing some consumers’ appetites — and also how much they spend on food. Most people taking those medications, … Read more

Inflation vs. deflation: Retailers fear falling prices

A man with a paper bag of groceries looks surprised and upset at a receipt from a supermarket with high prices against the background of an escalator with customers in the shopping center.  Elena Perova | Istock | Getty Images Just ahead of the holiday season, Walmart had encouraging news for inflation-weary shoppers: Prices on … Read more