How much are prices likely going to increase?

[Lovelybitofsquirrel3]

Is it realistic to think that prices might increase to similar prices as America or just endlessly. Could a bottle of milk one day be £10? Is that mad?

Prices have risen almost continuously for decades. Yes prices will continue rising as they always have.

But will there ever be a limit or stop on it? Can it just rise endlessly until a bottle of milk is £100?

The sign of a healthy economy is that inflation sits around 2% each year - so yes, the cost of things will always continue to go up as that’s how economies grow but the idea is that wages, investments, property etc will also go up so if you could afford a bottle of milk one year you should still be able to afford it the next year unless you’ve had a significant change in income.

It’s also not the case that everything increases in cost, some things get cheaper as they’re more mass produced and/or the materials get cheaper. Clothing is probably a good example, in real terms you can buy clothing for a much smaller proportion of your income than you could 60-odd years ago (which in that example hasn’t been a move in the right direction for the environment and workers rights but it has lead to a lot more people having access to a wide range of clothes than in the past).

I find it harder to fathom the increase in costs as I get older. I still think of £100 being a huge amount of money because when I was a teenager it really was. I also can’t get over the fact that Freddo’s aren’t 5p anymore…

I can just imagine someone 100 years ago saying 'can you imagine a pint of milk costing a pound one day?'

Of course things will go up but it's whether wages will increase corresponding.

Yes re clothing but the quality is far worse now. Well made clothing from natural fibers is as expensive now as it was then.

Exactly - so we’ve got out of touch with what clothes should cost or certainly how many is a ‘normal’ amount to have.

Lots have but I haven’t I can count on both hands how many clothes I’ve hot

I remember paying £25 for a pure silk shirt back in around 1993. I used to get a clothing allowance of £40 every 2 months as a teen and I struggled to buy what I needed from that. I can imagine a teen today being able to get by on that from the likes of primark, not withstanding bigger items such as coat/shoes being bought separately.

A limit or stop put in by who? Yes prices could continue to rise over the years until milk is £100.

That’s depressing

Is it? We’ll all be earning a lot more by then too as salaries will have gone up with inflation as well. Back when milk was 20p salaries were a lot lower. It’s all relative.

How is it depressing? 100 years ago the price of milk was 3p - but of course the average wage was a lot lower too. So if in 100 years the price of milk is £100, but we are all earning more, what's the difference?

What matters is the price of things relative to median wages I think

So housing has gone up over the decades whilst other things like food have gone if anything down

You notice when prices go up and wages lag

I suspect climate change will mean the next few decades feel increasingly stretched - insurance , food in particular

We’ll all be earning a lot more by then too as salaries will have gone up with inflation as well. Back when milk was 20p salaries were a lot lower. It’s all relative.

Err we have had years of wage stagnation

We have an ageing population & increased global volatility so things won't be getting cheaper in my lifetime.

Wages gone up between 5 and 7% each of the last few years so I wouldn't say stagflation really applies - I do agree for many it's catch up after the very high inflation period

@comingupintheworld so you are saying wages have now caught up with decades of wage stagnation?

I'd love to see the overall picture - I do know that during the last decade my wages always lagged inflation

Of course costs will keep going up. Inflation tends to go one way only. 200 years ago £200/year was an excellent income. You could buy goods for a penny. Halfpennies were a thing.

As pp says it doesn’t matter if costs go up , as long as wages go up in line. That’s the real issue right now, they aren’t.

www.statista.com/statistics/1272447/uk-wage-growth-vs-inflation/

For those who like data rather than feels

Not sure about that. I just looked it up and it says that £200 200 years ago would be worth around £23880. Basically minimum wage.

Edited as I’d looked at £20 not £200!