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John,
According to a recent analysis by the Guardian, over the last two years, Amazon’s profits have increased 333%.
Chevron, 144%.
And Albertsons, which is seeking to merge with Kroger, 671%.
During the same time period, the median wage in the U.S. increased 1.6%.
Consumers are struggling while corporations are using inflation as an excuse to increase prices, especially in industries that are experiencing the highest consolidation (such as Albertsons-Kroger). To “follow the money,” just look at their communications with investors.
At Hershey’s, where net profits due to higher prices jumped 62% over two years, and shareholders reaped $200 million in stock buybacks, the word to investors from CEO Michele Buck is to keep sticking it to consumers: “Pricing will be an important lever for us this year, and is expected to drive most of our growth.”
Then there’s Kroger, whose CEO Rodney McMullen told investors on a call, “a little bit of inflation is always good for our business.”
No doubt this put Kroger’s stockholders at ease. The working parent with their kids at the check-out line? Not so much.
Frankly, we’ve heard too much about how corporations exploit unease in the economy to further squeeze their own customers. Sign here to tell Congress, it’s time to take real measures to prevent price gouging.
Lest we think it’s just a few bad apples, consider some other corporate communications to investors. Chevron, with a 240% increase in profits over six months, bragged these were “the best two quarters the company has ever seen,” and promised to keep oil production low to keep prices high.
Diamondback Energy CEO Travis Stice was even more explicit about his motivations for keeping oil production low: “No one wants to see that shareholder return program put at risk with volume growth,” he said, promising his company would be “putting returns and, therefore, shareholders first.”
Steel Dynamics, with an 809% increase in profits over two years, boasted their higher prices “exceeded” increases in supply chain costs. The fertilizer company Nutrien, which sold less product at higher prices and increased profits $1.2 billion, told investors “higher selling prices more than offset higher raw material costs and lower sales volume.” And Keurig-Dr Pepper tagged their 83% profit increase to “significant pricing actions” that outpaced inflation.
What can be done to prevent price gouging, you might ask? There are a number of ways to put a check on some of the most egregious practices. Proposed legislation in the House and Senate can rein in excessive profits directly, while Biden has proposed to limit stock buybacks and consolidation. Strengthening and enforcing current antitrust laws would help, as would specifically targeted price controls on essential items such as bread.
Senator Bernie Sanders has pushed for a windfall profit tax, and Senator Elizabeth Warren’s bill addresses windfall profits for oil companies. In Sanders’ words,
“The American people ... are sick and tired of being ripped off by corporations making record-breaking profits while working families are forced to pay outrageously high prices for gas, rent, food, and prescription drugs.”
Sign the petition here to tell Congress, it’s time to take action against corporate greed and price gouging! Working families are struggling with excessive price increases designed to increase shareholder profits.
Thank you for putting American consumers first, and resisting excessive corporate profits!
- Amanda
Amanda Ford, Director
Democracy for America
Advocacy Fund
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