The consumer price index, a broad measure of the prices of goods and services, climbed 9.1 percent in June, a 41-year high. Amid rising prices, consumers have been tightening their wallets and cutting back on discretionary spending. Analysts had warned that inflation could reduce consumers’ willingness to pay for a new TV or Echo smart speaker during Prime Day. JP Morgan wrote in a note to clients on Monday that they expected “slower growth in Prime Day incremental revenue given the challenging macroeconomic environment.” The company’s analysts forecast total Prime Day revenue of $5.6 billion, up just 5% from a year earlier, compared with 50% year-over-year growth in 2020 and 9% year-over-year growth in 2021. “Sales are still very strong, but the category shift mix is related to inflation, especially around food,” Burdick said. “If they could figure out how to give gas, it would be the best Prime Day ever.” Rising grocery prices remain a major concern for many people nationwide. About 90% of Americans are concerned about food prices, according to a recent Harris poll in partnership with Alpha Foods. Consumers also avoided big-ticket items for smaller purchases. About 58% of Prime Day items sold for less than $20, while just 5% sold for more than $100, according to Numerator. About 34 percent of shoppers surveyed said they waited until Prime Day to buy something at a discounted price, and 28 percent passed up a good deal because they didn’t see it as a need, Numerator found. Prime Day and the other sales events that came with it serve as a good “touchstone” for consumer confidence amid fears of an impending recession, said Daniel Newman, principal analyst at Futurum Research. “It sounds to me like most people still feel like their home balance sheets are good, that they’re still willing to go out on a whim and buy some things on a day like Prime Day,” Newman said. Many consumers probably thought it made more sense to buy “15 packs of Kind Bars and three new Echos” when they were on sale, rather than wait, he added. “Should I spend $300 today or spend $500 tomorrow?” Newman said. “I think a lot of people rationalize that way. If we’re going to buy this thing in the next few months anyway, I might as well do it now.”
