The good thing is that inflation is on the decline.
A year after observing the highest annual cost-of-living adjustment in 4 decades, Social Security recipients are set to skip out on a further significant increase in their purchasing power in 2024 due to an irregularity of the calendar.
A group already dealing with the rising cost of necessities would take a hit from it.
The annual Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, the standard measure representing the majority of Americans, dropped to 4% in May, the lowest level in the previous 2 years, according to a study released this week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
3.6% were the result for the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which was even less. The annual cost-of-living adjustment for beneficiaries of Social Security is calculated using a different index.
On the surface, it appears to be good news: The rate of rising prices for those on fixed incomes is declining even more quickly than for the entire population.