Consumer
Disinflation Is Helping Consumer Companies, Just Not Their Customers
- Easing costs show up on company margins not at cash register
- Consumer firms lead S&P 500 in fourth-quarter share buybacks
The average gross margin for consumer discretionary and consumer staples companies in the Russell 3000 rose to 34% in the latest quarter.
Photographer: Christopher Dilts/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Retailers and restaurants are enjoying a bump up in gross margins as they finally get relief from rising prices for goods, services and labor.
From Dine Brands Global Inc. to Target Corp. to Mattel Inc., Corporate America is benefiting from business costs that are now rising more slowly or actually retreating, underscoring the progress the Federal Reserve has made fighting inflation since kicking off its rate tightening cycle two years ago.