RALEIGH, N.C. — A key U.S. inflation gauge cooled way down in June to the lowest level in more than two years.

 

What You Need To Know

  • The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported consumer prices in June were up 3% from a year ago, the smallest annual increase since March 2021

  • Despite high food prices, consumer spending has increased year-to-year in the restaurant industry

  • Vivo Ristorante, located in north Raleigh, is hoping for better days

 

Wholesale inflation rose by 1% for the 12 months ending in June, according to The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Producer Price Index released on Thursday.

The PPI that tracks the average change in prices businesses pay to suppliers has now dropped for 12 consecutive months.

There are signs the economy is coming back to life.

Everyone and everything is in motion at Vivo Ristorante in north Raleigh.

Gianni Cinelli wants his restaurant to feel like home.

“They’re family. Our customers are like family to us,” Cinelli said.

Cinelli and his wife Randy are owners of the restaurant.

“I think if you consistently put out a good product and treat people right, people know they can come here," Gianni Cinelli said.

Vivo is a scratch kitchen, meaning the ingredients for every meal are fresh every day.

Without food, none of this can happen even if those ingredients are more expensive.

“Extremely high. Triple the price that I paid two years ago,” he said.

The price of cooking oil, flour and imported tomatoes has risen.

“Our profit has shrunk. Shrunk, shrunk shrunk,” he said.

The BLS food index was up nearly 6% last month from the same time last year, which is higher than the national inflation rate of 3%.

The good news is that consumer spending in restaurants is up 8% over the last 12 months based on the National Restaurant Association’s analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau sales data.

“We are resilient. As Americans, as people, we are very resilient, and I’m seeing that resiliency,” he said.  

Stats back up Cinelli’s claim.

In May, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reports $1 trillion was spent eating and drinking out, up nearly 10% from the same month last year. 

Despite the cost of getting the ingredients on customers' plates, Cinelli said he sees the local restaurant industry trending in the right direction.

“I think people are going to explode. I think it’s going to explode. I think if you hold back and hold back and hold back, then you find out it’s not that bad then you release and that is what is happening right now,” he said.