A slate of new data this week painted a tepid but slightly optimistic picture of the US economy: Consumer prices declined in June for the first time in six years, jobless claims ticked down and retail sales rose modestly. So why doesn’t the data match up with how Americans are feeling?

On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks to Bloomberg’s Reade Pickert and labor economist Kathryn Anne Edwards about what the data does (and doesn’t) tell us about the state of the US economy.

Read more: How’s Inflation? Depends How It’s Measured


We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Reade Pickert; Edited by Aaron Edwards.

Fact-checking by Victor Swezey, Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Sean Carter.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

A slate of new data this week painted a tepid but slightly optimistic picture of the US economy: Consumer prices declined in June for the first time in six years, jobless claims ticked down and retail sales rose modestly. So why doesn&rsquo;t the data match up with how Americans are feeling?
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder talks to Bloomberg&rsquo;s Reade Pickert and labor economist Kathryn Anne Edwards about what the data does (and doesn&rsquo;t) tell us about the state of the US economy.
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2026-07-13/multiple-us-inflation-rates-would-better-capture-economic-reality">How&rsquo;s Inflation? Depends How It&rsquo;s Measured </a>
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Reade Pickert; Edited by Aaron Edwards.
Fact-checking by Victor Swezey, Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Sean Carter.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

Big Take

Inflation Is Cooling. Why Are Americans Still Sweating?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a0afbd83-c55e-4ba5-b3f1-b48901553276/transcript