© Reuters. Football – NFL – Super Bowl LVII – Kansas City Chiefs vs. Philadelphia Eagles – State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona, United States – February 12, 2023 Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes in action REUTERS/Brian Snyder
Samuel Indyk’s view of the day ahead in US and global markets.
Super Bowl LVII was a final for the ages as star quarterback Patrick Mahomes led his Kansas City Chiefs to a dramatic 38-35 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in Sunday’s showdown.
Ahead of the game, one statistic that blew the Englishman’s mind was the sheer amount of chicken wings to be eaten over Super Bowl weekend.
In a report released earlier this month, the National Chicken Council said Americans are expected to eat 1.45 billion chicken wings, up 2% from last year, or the equivalent of 84 million wings.
That’s a total of four wings for every man, woman and child, and enough to stretch from Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia about 62 times.
So why the 2% increase in demand? Well, if you’re looking for deflation, chicken wings are the place to find it.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, wholesale and retail wing prices are down by double digits from the same time last year, which National Chicken Council spokesman Tom Super says is one of the reasons for this year’s increase in demand.
“The two main reasons are cheaper prices and more people getting back to normal and getting together for the Big Game, either at home or at a bar/restaurant,” Super said.
For markets and the Federal Reserve, one question could be whether the drop in chicken wing prices is a harbinger of another easing of price pressures after Tuesday’s US consumer inflation reading.
The report is expected to show that consumer prices rose at an annual pace of 6.2% in January, down from 6.5% in December and well below June’s four-decade peak of 9.1%.
Inflation remains a driving force for markets, and with price growth expected to slow again last month, gains in stocks and bonds could resume after stalling after January’s surprisingly strong labor market data.
But if markets are cheering for an easing of price pressures, they may want to celebrate with something other than spirits, after December consumer price data showed the price of spirits rose 5.8% year-on-year.
GRAPHIC: Is inflation calming down in the US? (https://www.reuters.com/graphics/GLOBAL-MARKETS/lbpggbynzpq/Screenshot%202023-02-09%20at%2022.50.48.png)
Key events that could steer the US market later on Monday:
* US results: FirstEnergy (NYSE:), Newspaper budget (NASDAQ:), Palantir
* Auctions: three-month and six-month Treasury bills
(Author: Samuel Indyk; Editing: Sharon Singleton)