Investor Peter Schiff questioned Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh‘s inflation outlook after McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE:MCD) CEO Chris Kempczinski warned elevated inflation and squeezed household budgets are hurting customer traffic across the restaurant industry.
‘Who Do You Believe?’
“Today the McDonald’s CEO said he thinks ‘inflation’s going to be with us for, unfortunately, many more years at an elevated level,'” Schiff said in a post on X on Wednesday.
He contrasted it with Warsh’s position that inflation expectations remain firmly anchored at 2% and that the Fed will ultimately hit that target.
“Who do you believe?” he added.
At McDonald’s Investor Day, Kempczinski said “industry traffic growth in our wholly owned markets will be flat while inflation remains elevated,” adding that “the winners will be the companies that create more demand and deliver it more efficiently.”
In an interview with CNBC, the CEO said he was not expecting things to change.
Warsh Says 2% Inflation Is ‘a Firm, Fixed Target’
Warsh used his August Jackson Hole speech to argue inflation, not employment, is now the Fed’s primary focus, calling the 2% goal “a firm, fixed target” and warning that “price stability is not self-executing.”
The Fed raised its benchmark rate by 25 basis points last week, its first hike since 2023.
U.S. annual inflation held at 3.4% in August, with gasoline up 3.9% for the month, alone accounting for more than a third of the overall price increase.
Gas and Diesel Prices Keep Squeezing Household Budgets
The national average for gasoline stood at $4.4744 a gallon Wednesday, up from $4.0986 a month ago and $3.1719 a year ago, according to AAA. Diesel hit a high of $6.5276 a gallon Tuesday.
Brent crude was trading 0.24% lower at $103.33 a barrel amid the ongoing Iran conflict, and the resulting pump price run-up is squeezing household budgets.
WTI futures were up 0.03% at $92.19.
Price Action: The ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil (NYSE:UCO) ETF rose 2.66% to close at $52.16 on Wednesday and fell 0.38% in extended trading, while the United States Oil Fund (NYSE:USO) gained 3.3% to $148.83 and fell 0.48% in after-hours.
Benzinga Edge rankings indicate ProShares ETF has a Momentum score in the 96th percentile and a positive price trend in the short, medium, and long term.
See More: Top Momentum Stocks
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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