Word: rising
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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Intelligent cooperation on the part of all the people is a dream which may possibly be fulfilled in the nebulous future. The cooperation and coordination which have in the past enabled the United States to rise to unpredictable heights have been the product of passions and emotions, such as those produced during the war. The futility of expecting such singleness of purpose to carry over into peacetime living is illustrated by the present conflict over price controls. The majority of the people know that the continuance of controls would be best for the economy as a whole, yet each group...
...guesses ran from a 20% to a 50% rise. But the guessers forgot that in a free, productive economy things do not always work according to plan. As long as no one has enough money to buy everything he wants, then he can buy one thing only by not buying something else. Thus, if rents jump up 35% (as they have in many places) the hard fact is that the renter will not be able to buy something else. Prices of many items were certain to rise. But prices of other items may drop...
...consumers-goods industries, the rises, if they come, will be spotty and cautious at first. The great mass-production industries (autos, refrigerators, stoves) cannot afford a price rise if 1) it cuts the market too much, or 2) gives a competitor an advantage. Many industries, which have been slow getting into production because of strikes and materials shortages, are now producing at, or close to, the break-even point. What they will do depends to a great extent on whether the prices of parts and basic supplies (steel, glass, etc.) go up. The manufacturers can afford to wait...
Most important, the abnormal demand for food, clothing and other consumer goods has been partially filled. The return to normal demand should put a crimp in prices. In any case, the spiral of wages & costs cannot rise indefinitely, as long as production is increasing. The fact that wages usually lag behind rising prices will bring acute hardship to many. But it will put an ultimate ceiling on prices. As purchasing power drops, prices will have to come down also...
Since World War II's end the course of events has been different. The demand has been bigger, but with OPA at the controls, the rise in prices has been gentler. Recovery of production has been far slower. There has been little speculative piling up of inventories. In fact, inventories, although growing, are still below normal...