Wednesday, March 7, 2012

1954: Prices and Fed Policy

Prices were incredibly subdued in 1954.  Consider the following charts:


The year over year percentage change in PPI was mild for the first half of the year and negative for the second -- albeit very slightly negative.


The year over year percentage change in CPI showed the exact same pattern as PPI.

Also consider these price charts from the 1954 Federal Reserve policy review:



Remember that in early 1951, Congress passed a price control act as a way to prevent price spikes during a time of war.  Also remember that there were wage and price panels that monitored and set prices for a bit of time after the passage of that act.

However, as prices were contained, interest rates dropped: