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Family dollar, credit cards and retirement accounts : The Indicator from Planet Money Many broad economic indicators are positive, but consumer sentiment is negative. Even with cooling inflation and low unemployment, consumers are still feeling the economic strain. In today's episode, we look at three ways the US consumer is feeling the pinch.

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For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

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The Indicator from Planet Money

Three ways consumers are feeling the pinch

Three ways consumers are feeling the pinch

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Shoppers walk past a delivery truck outside a Family Dollar in Hyattsville, Maryland. Family Dollar has announced it's closing 600 stores this year. Bloomberg / Contributor hide caption

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Bloomberg / Contributor

Shoppers walk past a delivery truck outside a Family Dollar in Hyattsville, Maryland. Family Dollar has announced it's closing 600 stores this year.

Bloomberg / Contributor

Since 2020, grocery prices have shot up. If you're looking to save a buck, it's often more affordable to shop for groceries at a big retailer like Walmart. But some smaller grocers say those low prices are the result of an unfair playing field—and they're looking to a little-used antitrust law from the 1930s as a solution. Today, we consider the Robinson-Patman Act and whether reviving it could bring consumers some relief.

Related episodes:
Grocery delivery wars (Apple / Spotify)
Feeling inflation in the grocery store (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.