Retirees set for historic COLA increase

COLA rates could see a three-decade run come to an end, and that’s good news for retirees.

Transcript

00:00I'm Conway Gittins reporting from the New York Stock Exchange.

00:02Here's what we're watching on the street today.

00:04Wall Street begins a new week with a focus on economic data.

00:08Investors are keen to see if readings on consumer and producer

00:12prices nudge the Federal Reserve towards a quarter percentage point

00:16rate cut or a half percentage point rate cut in September.

00:19July retail sales will also be a key indicator

00:22on the health of the consumer and the economy overall.

00:27Good news is expected for America's retirees.

00:302025 is likely to bring a Social Security Cost of Living

00:34Adjustment, or COLA, increase that hasn't

00:37been seen in over three decades.

00:40The government won't release official numbers until October.

00:43But based on 2024's inflation data, experts

00:46predict Social Security recipients could

00:48get a raise of between 2.7% to 3.2%.

00:52A raise that big would mean four straight years of raises

00:56at or above 2.7%.

00:58That hasn't happened in 32 years.

01:02In order to determine the size of the adjustment,

01:04the Department of Health and Human Services

01:06relies on third quarter data from the Consumer Price

01:10Index for urban wage earners and clerical workers.

01:13In June, that rate was 2.9% higher than a year ago,

01:18and experts only expect it to tick down a little in coming months.

01:22The Senior Citizens League says any raise

01:25will likely be gobbled up by food prices that are still

01:28higher than they were before 2020.

01:30One dozen eggs cost 80% more, lettuce is 72% more expensive,

01:36and a pound of sugar is up by 45%.

01:39Price jumps like those have led to rising food insecurity

01:42for retirees, according to the group.

01:45A recent survey of retirees showed one third of respondents

01:49said they either visited a food pantry

01:52or applied for food stamps over the past year.

01:55That'll do it for your daily briefing from the New York Stock Exchange.

01:58I'm Conway Gittens with The Street.