One area where Costco has quietly increased its prices is at its gas stations. While these stations generally offer prices lower than competitors in the area, there has been a noticeable uptick. Costco gas prices tend to be significantly lower than other gas stations, often by thirty to fifty cents, according to data from GoBankingRates based on prices listed by the GasBuddy app.

Shoppers across the U.S. and Canada have also noticed price increases on some popular goods. For instance, the price of Kirkland Signature organic extra virgin olive oil saw a notable increase, jumping from $16.99 in March 2023 to $24.99 this year at one store in Brooklyn, as reported by EatThis,NotThat!.

There’s also speculation that membership fees could see an increase. Former Costco CFO Richard Galanti hinted at a potential price increase on the company’s popular CostcoGold and Executive memberships during the chain’s fiscal-first-quarter earnings call. This would be the first increase since 2017 and could range from $5 to $10. Despite these potential increases, the company reported a 7.3% increase in total cardholders to 132 million as of the end of the second quarter.

On the flip side, Galanti noted that the company has seen improved profitability in gasoline sales, allowing it to increase prices in line with the market. “We’ve been able to see improved profitability, not just in the last quarter or two, but over the last few years,” he said.

However, Galanti also mentioned that some items, like furniture and other bulky, lower-priced items, may start to fall in price due to reduced freight costs. “Some deflationary items were as much as 20% to 30% and, again, mostly freight-related,” he explained.

In better news for customers, the price of the iconic $1.50 hot dog and soda combo at Costco’s food court, which has remained unchanged for approximately four decades, is expected to remain the same. The company has kept this price consistent thanks to a pledge from its founders.

Additionally, Costco has recently started selling Kimbap, a dish similar to sushi, at competitive prices. This item has been a hit at Trader Joe’s and is now making waves at Costco. “You get 6 kimbap for $18, making it slightly cheaper than TJ’s,” one Reddit user wrote under the Costco thread.

While Costco has made some price adjustments, it still offers a variety of competitive prices and continues to be a go-to for many shoppers.

Article generated from corporate media reports.

“Walmart is selling gold and silver. Are you awake yet? This is a financial change,” one X user said.

https://twitter.com/hustlewithRich/status/1738531338540535837

Another X user said: “First Costco, Now Walmart.”

First Costco Now Walmart #Gold #Silver #Collapse pic.twitter.com/3hKT4BjzwD

— thetainvestor (@thetainvestor) December 26, 2023

Here’s what others are saying:

Walmart is not selling bullion direct to consumer. They are being sold by @APMEX @usmint etc looks like they are just trying to capture as much exposure as possible for @Costco @Walmart customers ( which is smart, major FOMO at all time highs for GOLD )

— Darth Grogu (@_GalacticChild) December 27, 2023

Walmart appears to be getting on the precious metals action following Costco CFO Richard Galanti’s comments earlier this month about incredible gold bar demand among consumers:

“You’ve probably read about the fact that we’re selling one-ounce gold bars. We sold over $100 million of gold during the quarter.” 

Galanti continued:

“When we load them [gold bars] on the site, they’re typically gone within a few hours.”

Costco’s and Walmart’s gold rush comes as gold prices have soared 14% since early October to a new record high of $2,088 this week. Gold’s strength has been underpinned by traders’ aggressive pricing of Federal Reserve rate cuts.

It’s not just politicians. Citizen “activists” are engaging in hideous behavior to try to prevent Republican efforts. In Washington state, one desperate Democrats went full “Karen-mode” in a Costco to disrupt a voter registration drive.

As patriotic journalist Brandi Kruse noted, these actions are illegal:

HAPPENING NOW: This woman just crossed out a page of voter signatures at the Issaquah Costco, which is a gross misdemeanor. This comes amid Democrat-backed effort to harass and intimidate Let’s Go WA signature gatherers (black marks mine to protect voter info).

The signature gatherer tells me he chased the woman as she ran inside and hid behind a Costco employee. He admits that he shouted at her. Costco called Issaquah police … on the signature gatherers.

The signature gatherer tells me he chased the woman as she ran inside and hid behind a Costco employee. He admits that he shouted at her. Costco called Issaquah police … on the signature gatherers. pic.twitter.com/55XDWoOOje

— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) December 18, 2023

The signature gatherers decided to pack up and leave. @IssaquahPolice spoke to them briefly (could not hear conversation). Not clear whether Costco will help police identify the woman who crossed out signatures.

In a twist of fate, yours truly happened to be shopping at Costco while this went down. An employee came up to me and asked me to stop journalism-ing on their property – but not before saying incidents like this are why they don’t like having signature collectors there. HOWEVER:

In a twist of fate, yours truly happened to be shopping at Costco while this went down. An employee came up to me and asked me to stop journalism-ing on their property – but not before saying incidents like this are why they don’t like having signature collectors there. HOWEVER: pic.twitter.com/0fMHjBwLka

— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) December 18, 2023

The law on this is tricky. While Costco is private property, it has allowed similar activity in the past. In fact, in 2010 Costco used its stores as signature gathering hubs to get the liquor initiative passed. https://www.king5.com/article/news/politics/costco-collecting-signatures-for-wash-liquor-initiative/281-332684435

So while Costco was certainly justified in calling @IssaquahPolice to help them sort out this ordeal, surely they also care about helping identify the woman who was attempting to disenfranchise Washington voters? End

So while Costco was certainly justified in calling @IssaquahPolice to help them sort out this ordeal, surely they also care about helping identify the woman who was attempting to disenfranchise Washington voters? End pic.twitter.com/1aTmpFeCsS

— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) December 18, 2023

It’s becoming increasingly apparent that Democrats are so concerned that their policies are being exposed that they’re willing to do anything to prevent the losses coming in 2024. They’d rather see the nation burn under their watch than succeed under Republican control.

The sought-after 1-ounce gold bars have become a hot commodity, consistently selling out within hours of being listed on Costco’s website. In September, Galanti noted that the gold bars, priced at $2,069.99 per ounce on the website, were in high demand, often disappearing swiftly despite their premium cost compared to the latest spot price of $2,020.58.

To manage demand, Costco has implemented a two-bar limit per membership, making it challenging for customers to amass a significant position in the precious metal. Despite this limitation, customer satisfaction appears high, evident in the product’s impressive 4.9-star rating on Costco’s website, backed by nearly 800 reviews. However, a few customers expressed dissatisfaction with the imposition of stiff state sales taxes.

The surge in gold prices, up by approximately 12% this year, has undoubtedly contributed to the popularity of these gold bars. JPMorgan, in its commodities outlook, predicts a potential breakout rally for gold in 2024, with an anticipated peak price of $2,300 per ounce, driven by expected decreases in interest rates.

While JPMorgan acknowledges the possibility of gold retracing to $1,900 per ounce in the coming months, the bank suggests that this could set the stage for investors positioning themselves for a midyear rally in 2024.

Recent market dynamics, including a weakened U.S. dollar and lowered Treasury yields following the Federal Reserve’s announcement of three rate cuts in 2024, have further propelled gold’s weekly gains.

However, it’s important to note a distinctive feature of Costco’s gold bars—they are nonrefundable. This characteristic adds an intriguing element to the investment, emphasizing the commitment required by those venturing into the world of precious metals through this unconventional retail channel. As Costco continues to make waves in unexpected markets, the success of its gold sales underscores the evolving landscape of online retail and consumer investment preferences.

Many shoppers are buying in bulk to try to save on costs and stock up for the future, and they’ve been flocking to Costco in search of good deals. But in the past few weeks, it seems that a large number of items are sold out at Costco warehouses, and new price markups are shocking customers who revealed increases of up to 250% on Costco products, according to a recent analysis of consumer complaints.

For that reason, in today’s video, we tracked which supplies faced the biggest price hikes at Costco stores over the past month, and we shared the latest warning from the company’s CFO Richard Galanti about the future of the U.S. economy.

A new analysis shows that the main reason for the company’s disappointing sales numbers: Soaring prices at the retailer’s warehouses. And some loyal customers, who pay a membership fee that can typically go from $60 to $100, are outraged with recent price markups. The megaretailer says that higher operational costs and commodity prices are affecting prices in all industries, but especially the grocery sector.

Americans are noticing a lot of sold-out notes on Costco shelves in the past few weeks. Shortages of household supplies and basic grocery items seem to be rapidly spreading across Costco warehouses. However, most of the complaints have been published by shoppers that just can’t believe the price hikes they’re seeing at their local stores. One major example of this was the 250% increase in the price of 40-packs of Kirkland-branded water bottles. One Redditor reported that the bulk buy, which cost $1.44 as recently as a year ago, now costs $4.99.

“Yeah that used to be the case at the beginning of the year, just checked yesterday, and $4.99, ridiculous,” user u/ghx16 wrote.

User jasonsparks19 said that crab legs have more than doubled in price over the past year: “King crab legs went from $23/lb to $48/lb.”

That’s a 110% increase. It has been difficult for shoppers to find chicken nuggets in stock at Costco, as they are often sold out in the frozen section due to the high demand. They used to cost $13 for a four-pound bag, but are now going for $19.99, causing some customers to express their displeasure with the price hike on Reddit.

“I saw them today for the first time in a while too. My jaw dropped when I saw the price and I kept walking,” a commenter said.

When even affordable chains are losing customers due to rising prices, then you know something must be broken in our economy. At this point, prices should be going down, but that’s not what we’re seeing when we go shopping. At the end of the day, Costco is not the only retailer raising prices right now, and certainly, it is not the only one facing financial losses and declining sales.

This situation is just a symptom of a much larger issue that is going to accelerate as we reach the final stretch of 2023. And you too should start preparing for the recession that has only just begun.

Article and video cross-posted from Epic Economist.

Meanwhile, some shelves remain empty at the retailer’s stores, That’s why, in today’s video, we decided to track the grocery products facing the steepest price increases in recent weeks and months, and which ones are still in short supply at Costco so you can prepare for the challenging environment that lies ahead.

Over the past year, it has been hard to overlook the fact that the cost of everything from produce to baked goods to dairy products increased at Costco warehouses. But new reports show that this trend has intensified in recent months, and analysts at GoBankingRates say that a new round of price hikes was just introduced in the company’s system, that’s why staying aware and prepared is key.

Since April, price tag changes of 30% up to 70% were observed at the chain’s warehouses, according to Julie Ramhold, an industry expert with DealNews.com. That was also true in May, and June, with a flood of consumer reports confirming the trend. The report also notes that the most shocking price hikes occurred in the meat category, which includes beef, pork, poultry, and fish.

Right now, four-pound packs of Costco’s Kirkland Signature Sliced Bacon are selling for $21.99, up from $16.99 just a couple of months ago, Ramhold points out. Another user noted in May that ground beef prices soared to $25.99 at Costco, while the same product was selling for $19.49 at Aldi. The steepest price increase was observed on King Crab prices, which shoot up from $22.99/lb to $38.99/lb, a whopping 70% surge.

At the same time, dairy products and eggs continue to face empty shelves at Costco warehouses, and prices are rising faster than at other big-box stores. For lots of people out there, these higher prices mean they can no longer afford to shop at Costco. Although you can still find deals for certain products, the cost of basic staples is reaching record levels.

Data shared by Bloomberg reveals that those price hikes are already hurting Costco’s bottom line. In May, the company’s sales declined for the third straight month as US consumers fled to cheaper stores.In June, the company’s Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti warned about exceedingly difficult times for US consumers.

He said he has seen a significant share of customers switching from purchases of beef products to less expensive choices, like pork and chicken. He highlighted that typically observes this trend historically during times when the US entered a recession in the past.

Galanti’s cautious tone scared investors, who were already concerned about the company’s rising prices, supply chain problems, and slowing sales. That pushed Costco stock down 20% from March levels.

With crazy-high prices turning more and more customers away, turbulence is coming for the warehouse chain. But before things start spiraling out of control, don’t forget to check for deals and get ready for the inflationary crisis at major grocery stores in the months ahead.

Article and video cross-posted from Epic Economist.

It’s important to know something up front. I have NOT been a “Chicken Little” who was screaming about economic collapse for years. I didn’t panic for Y2K. I didn’t panic during the economic downturn of 2008-2009. I didn’t freak out over Obamacare, at least not from an economic perspective. I believed that we could recover from the 2020 lockdowns. But by mid-2021 I finally started getting truly concerned and throughout 2022 I’ve been monitoring the nation’s economy very closely.

Now, I’m ringing the alarm bells because the threat of full-blown global economic collapse is real as we go into 2023.

On today’s episode of The JD Rucker Show, I covered several stories that highlight the dangerous trends we’re seeing. Unfortunately, the Biden-Harris regime seems bent on making things even worse and the new Republican majority in the House doesn’t seem willing or able to do much to stop it.

One of the prevailing stories giving people hope for the past couple of months is better-than-expected stock performance. Is this a sign that the tide is turning? According to Bloomberg and Zero Hedge, no. It’s just a sign that markets expected good things to happen. Since they haven’t, we shouldn’t anticipate a stock market that continues to overperform:

Two Great Months for US Stocks Promise Too Much for Own Good

The markets have been front-running the idea of a Fed pivot for some time now. While that is far-fetched, one must still admit that a Fed pause after its funds rate reaches circa 5%-5.25% is very much on the cards. While pretty much everyone in the markets is primed for the idea of a US recession, November’s non-farm payroll numbers (and perhaps even more importantly, the hourly earnings rising at twice the forecast pace) suggest that this inflationary episode may be around longer than realized.

And that is a worse denouement than any stock investor would wish. Not only do you have a scenario where inflation is corroding the nominal coupon on stocks, but you also have to factor in a slowing economy where presumably there is also a drag on earnings. A scenario that weighs on both the numerator and denominator (a high interest-rate recession) is hardly a prescription for a stellar rally month after month.

At current levels, the S&P 500 offers an estimated earnings yield of around 5.40% and the Nasdaq 100 around 4.32%, hardly anything to write home about in an environment where you can invest in two-year Treasuries that offer 4.27%.

Yes, there may be something to be said for being a part of that smart-money brigade that has made a grand return of 20%+ within a quarter and fleeing to where the honey is next, but that is predicated more on getting the timing right — an iffy proposition even with the most seasoned investors. For every one idea that works out as per plan, the nine that follow come a cropper. [read more]

Costco Reports Large-Scale Shortages as Essential Items Are Impossible to Find at Stores

On the second segment of today’s show, I turned to the “Epic Economist” to deliver a dose of reality about Costco. It’s a financial indicator some use to see what’s really happening with the supply chain and the retain market. Here’s a transcript followed by the individual video I played during today’s show:

The pantry of most American families today is probably looking a lot different than it was just a few months ago when grocery prices were lower and we still could find the majority of the products we usually rely on in our day-to-day lives. But now, shoppers are increasingly noticing the ongoing shortages at their favorite stores. With supply chain problems still impacting the production and delivery of goods, and mass migrations of employees searching for better wages resulting in labor shortages in the food sector, many of our favorite staple items are becoming harder to find. And that’s especially true at Costco.

In fact, new reports reveal that Costco warehouses are facing many different shortages, and dozens of products are about to be discontinued. Costco customers are getting more and more frustrated as they see essential items disappearing from the store’s shelves and start facing purchase limits once again. Today, we decided to track some of the most severe product stockouts and also expose which items may disappear next.

In recent months, American shoppers have been repeatedly reporting missing grocery items at their local Costco warehouse. But things seem to have taken a turn for the worse in October when several food products that were supposed to enter our food supply chains never arrived. We had a year of historical crop losses due to extreme weather conditions. The worst drought ever seen in this century resulted in some of the weakest harvest seasons in nearly five decades.

The scorching temperatures also led our beef cow herd to rapidly shrink, as farmers sent their animals to slaughter earlier than they typically do to prevent them from dying of thirst and starvation amid dwindling supplies of water and cow feed. You also probably heard about the avian flu epidemic, which is not only leading to shortages of chicken but also pushing poultry and egg prices to skyrocket The result of all of these losses is now being seen at the stores in the form of empty shelves.

Even major grocers like Costco are struggling to keep shelves fully stocked and announcing that in the coming months, many items will be discontinued. That’s why we decided to analyze data provided by Eat This, Not That, a leading news outlet in food, nutrition, and health, to track which are the most persistent grocery shortages at the retailer’s locations and what items are about to go out of stock.

The company just announced that dozens of products are being discontinued over the next few months. This means that your favorite treats may disappear from the store and not come back. A new report exposed that you may have to say goodbye to a wide range of treats that the retailer decided it will no longer sell. Knowing that some of your favorite items are going to be discontinued is one of the most disappointing experiences as a grocery shopper.

At the same time, it looks like purchasing limits are back with a vengeance. When searching the warehouse’s website for “limit”, we found dozens of items, ranging from active dry yeast at five per member, to almond flour at one per member, to acetaminophen at one per member, several types of wild canned tuna at one per member, mac and cheese at 10 per member, to soy milk at two per member, and many more. Retailers haven’t been able to catch a breath these days. The environment for most businesses remains tough, and as this downturn accelerates, they will continue to see their bottom lines getting hurt, and the same will be true for our personal finances.

Could 65 Trillion Dollars in “Hidden” Derivatives Cause the Entire Global Financial System to Crash?

If you thought that the collapse of FTX was something, just wait until the entire global financial system comes crashing down all around us.  Most people just assume that the system is being managed by rational people that behave in rational ways, but of course countless investors assumed the same things about FTX.  Sadly, the global financial system has slowly but surely been transformed into the largest casino in the history of the world.  It is a colossal Ponzi scheme, and once in a while authorities give us a little peek into what is really going on behind the curtain.

For example, this week the Bank for International Settlements released a report that warned that 65 trillion dollars in “hidden” currency derivatives could potentially be a major threat to the stability of the entire system…

There’s a hidden risk to the global financial system embedded in the $65 trillion of dollar debt being held by non-US institutions via currency derivatives, according to the Bank for International Settlements.

In a paper with the title “huge, missing and growing,” the BIS said a lack of information is making it harder for policy makers to anticipate the next financial crisis. In particular, they raised concern with the fact that the debt is going unrecorded on balance sheets because of accounting conventions on how to track derivative positions.

Last year, the total value of all goods and services produced in the entire world was just 96 trillion dollars.

So we are talking about an amount of money that is almost unimaginable. [read more]

The Bubble Economy’s Credit-Asset Death Spiral

Understanding why those in the financial industry aren’t ringing the alarm bell takes one simple revelation. Even as economies begin collapsing, THEY’RE still making plenty of money. The messes that are being made are mostly affecting the middle class. Even those with modest wealth are feeling the crunch. But the real money players are benefitting greatly. We discussed this a bit on the episode with an article by Charles Hugh Smith from Of Two Minds via Lew Rockwell:

Who believed that central banks’ financial perpetual motion machine was anything more than trickery designed to generate phantom wealth? Central banks seem to have perfected the ideal financial perpetual motion machine: as credit expands, money pours into risk assets, which shoot higher under the pressure of expanding demand for assets that yield either hefty returns (junk bonds) or hefty capital gains as the soaring assets suck in more capital chasing returns.

As assets soar in value, they serve as collateral for more credit. Higher valuations = more collateral to borrow against. This open spigot of additional credit sluices capital right back into the assets that are climbing in value, pushing them higher–which then creates even more collateral to support even more credit.

This self-reinforcing feedback of expanding credit feeding expanding valuations feeding expanding collateral which then feeds expanding credit has no apparent end. Modest houses once worth $100,000 are now worth $1,000,000, and nobody’s complaining except those priced out of the infinite spiral of prices and credit.

For those priced out of traditional assets, there’s NFTs, meme stocks and short-duration options. The credit-asset bubble-economy casino has a gaming table for everyone’s budget and desire to “make it big” via speculation, since the traditional ladders to middle-class security have all been splintered.

This financial perpetual motion machine distorts traditional incentives. Why bother renting a house bought for speculative gains? Renters are problematic, better to just let it sit empty and rack up huge capital gains. Count the lighted windows at night in all those new condo high-rises. Are even 20% occupied? Probably not.

This is how you get a “housing shortage”: investors would rather keep units clean and off the market rather than risk renting units. When credit and asset valuations are both feeding an infinite expansion, all that matters is leveraging capital to acquire as many assets as possible to maximize the gains from this self-reinforcing wealth-creation machine.

This machine also incentivizes fraud. To really maximize gains, why not borrow clients’ capital? Indeed, why not? But unbeknownst to the central bank sorcerers and the greed-crazed participants, all systems have limits and all consequences have their own consequences, i.e. second-order effects. There are many such dynamics which are eroding the apparently unbreakable financial perpetual motion machine. [read more]

Our Gold Guy

In the 4th segment, I replayed an interview with Ira Bershatsky from Our Gold Guy that I recorded last week. Here’s what he has to say on his website:

Look around. Things aren’t the way they should be. Between Pandemic Panic Theater, Ukraine, food shortages, and a push for Central Bank Digital Currencies, everything you’ve spent your life building and protecting is in jeopardy.

Precious metals are historically the most reliable and safest hedge against economic turmoil. With the Biden regime and globalists enhancing the chaos, it’s important for patriotic Americans to take control of their financial future.

Ira Bershatsky offers consultations to those who want to invest in precious metals. During these consultations, he will match your current financial situation with the best physical precious metal purchases whether you want to rollover your IRA or have coins discreetly shipped to your home. You will not talk to a telemarketer or sales rep. You will talk to a true expert in precious metals with decades of experience helping people protect and advance their wealth.

Central Bank Digital Currencies With Brannon Howse and Congressman Glenn Grothman

The fifth segment had me turning to my good friend Brannon House and his interview of Congressman Glenn Grothman:

The Biden-Harris Regime Quietly Changes Rules to Incentivize Financial Advisors to Put Your Money Into Woke Investments EVEN IF IT LOSES MONEY

It’s no secret that the Biden-Harris regime and their puppetmasters among the globalist elite cabal absolutely hate us. They despise us as useless eaters who must be depopulated or controlled for them to achieve their nefarious goals of The Great Reset, the 4th Industrial Revolution, Build Back Better, the Green New Deal, the Liberal World Order, or whatever label they slap on their machinations in the future.

Now, they’re proudly declaring this hatred by prompting financial advisors and retirement institutions to move your money to ESG companies. Moreover, they lifted rules requiring them to try to make you money. In other words, they can lose money for YOU and still make money for themselves as long as they’re investing in wokeness. You can’t make this up, but apparently someone among the powers-that-be did anyway.

According to Jeff Murdoch at The Washington Times [emphasis added]:

The Biden administration has quietly finalized a rule allowing employers to funnel workers’ 401(k) funds into investments that support woke causes that address issues such as climate change and diversity.

The Labor Department recently approved the rule affecting roughly 150 million workers and $10 trillion in assets covered under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

The rule says asset managers and retirement plan administrators should consider environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) factors when selecting investments. That would encourage money managers to balance financial returns with investments that support wind and solar energy or have diverse boards of directors.

The rules also remove a restriction blocking employers from using an ESG fund as a default option for workers automatically enrolled in 401(k) plans. That means workers could be supporting causes that don’t align with their political views.

It also rescinds Trump-era regulations that require retirement plan administrators and asset managers to choose investments based solely on participants’ financial interests.

This is just another reason why I STRONGLY recommend everyone of all ages move their wealth or retirement into a self-directed IRA. Don’t let advisors and retirement companies quietly compel you to lose money on woke investments even as they make more money thanks to the Biden-Harris regime’s priorities.