Prices are up, wages are up, but last I checked (admittedly a month or two ago) profits were doing just fine. That profits are still solid under so many adverse conditions indicates to me that there is a lack of competition in the market, very little competitive pressure on pricing. The Fed isn't going to fix that with rate hikes, and there doesn't seem to be any interest in enforcing the anti-trust laws that we have on the books. I think we're in for an exciting ride, though I'm happy to hear why I'm wrong. :-)