Target shoppers Kelly Foley (from left), Debbie Winslow and Ann Rich use a smartphone to look at a competitor's prices while shopping shortly after midnight on Black Friday, in South Portland, Maine. Robert F. Bukaty/AP hide caption
inflation inflation
Take that scenic drive, because gasoline prices have fallen this summer. iStockphoto hide caption
Meat is displayed in a case at a grocery store in Miami. The index of retail prices for meats, poultry, fish and eggs was up 7.7 percent from a year ago — more than triple the overall inflation rate. Joe Raedle/Getty Images hide caption
A surge in prices at the pump fueled inflation in June. Jonathan Fickies /Landov hide caption
Handles on a gas pump in Brooklyn. Jonathan Fickies /Landov hide caption
Gasoline prices at a station in Encinitas, Calif., earlier this week. Mike Blake/Reuters /Landov hide caption
The cost of a gallon of gas kept rising last year, but not at the torrid pace of 2010 and 2011. That helped keep inflation in check. Joe Raedle/Getty Images hide caption
Shoppers in Manhattan on Christmas Eve last month. Keith Bedford /Reuters /Landov hide caption
Sign of the times: Markdowns at a discount clothing store in New York City last month. Such stiff competition for consumers' dollars is helping to keep inflation in check. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption
The line was long last week at a job fair in Chicago. Scott Olson/Getty Images hide caption
