A majority of Americans now say inflation is causing them financial strain, according to a new poll from Gallup.
Fifty-six percent of Americans say that rising prices caused hardships for their families, up from 49% in January, despite signs of stabilizing prices and improving confidence in the economy.
Republicans have tried to pin rising prices on President Joe Biden and Democrats as midterm elections draw near, and the survey showed signs of the partisan nature of the issue. GOP respondents were more likely than Democrats to say that inflation was causing financial strain. Sixty-seven percent of Republicans said that rising costs caused their households to experience financial difficulties compared to 44% of Democrats.
In a Gallup poll released in August, 25% of Republicans listed inflation as their top concern, compared to just 8 percent of Democrats.
The increase in money problems was most prevalent among middle-class households, with 63% saying that rising prices caused hardship, compared to 56% in January and 46% last November. Forty percent of upper-income households also said that inflation was causing concern, an increase from 32% in January and 28% in November.
Lower-income Americans were less likely to report an increase in hardship, though as a group they reported the most difficulty overall. In August, 74% of lower income households said that rising prices were causing a burden, an increase from 66% in January. Reports of financial troubles due to inflation actually decreased by 4 points for lower-income households from November to January.
The survey, conducted from Aug. 1-22, comes at a time the economy has shown indications of improvement. After a rapid increase in prices in the first half of the year, inflation began to slow over the summer amid a campaign by the Fed of steadily raising interest rates. Gas prices, which in large part drove the spike in inflation, hit a record high of $5.01 a gallon in June only to recede to a current average of $3.75. The supply chain crisis, driven by pandemic-induced shortages and changes in spending habits, has also begun to clear up, decreasing pressures on retailers. According to a Gallup poll released last week, confidence in the economy has improved among people of all political groups, though it still remains low overall.
In response to inflation, 24% of households reported decreasing non-essential spending and 17% said they were taking measures to save money on gas. Seven percent of those polled reported that they were looking for a new job or increasing the hours they work, in order to earn more money. A small percentage of households also reported more extreme responses, including incurring more debt and postponing medical treatment.
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