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As President Joe Biden announces his plan to forgive student debt, economists have already begun debating whether the action could compound the surging inflation that continues to bedevil the U.S. economy. Among the most prominent voices warning that the forgiveness would lead to increased inflation has been Larry Summers, former treasury secretary and Harvard University president emeritus, who voiced his opinion in a series of tweets Monday. "I hope the Administration does not contribute to inflation macro economically by offering unreasonably generous student loan relief," he wrote. He said the debt relief would translate into increased spending, which would in turn increase overall demand and, thus, inflation. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization focused on fiscal policy issues, echoed the concerns, writing on Aug. 16 that $10,000 of debt cancellation would add 0.15% to one common measure of inflation, the Personal Consumpt...

The first regular-season game of the NFL season kicks off Sept. 8, and just in time: Chicken wings are at their lowest prices in years. The Department of Agriculture's price index for chicken wings is now at levels not seen since 2018, with the average wholesale price of a pound of wings falling to about $1.68 in July, and trending even lower for August. It's a startling reversal of a trend that saw a dramatic run-up in prices for chicken wings early in the pandemic, one that coincided with broader inflation in the economy, labor shortages and surging demand for poultry as fast-food chains began rolling out competing chicken sandwiches. But last month, Wingstop president and CEO Michael Skipworth said the company would start to see deflation in prices for bone-in chicken wings. On July 28, the company said prices had fallen nearly 19% year-over-year in its fiscal second quarter. One reason for the rapid price decline, according to Fabio Sandri, CEO of the multinational pou...