Is this the same country we live in? Inflation at 3.8%? Almost anything we buy at the supermarket jumps in price by more than 3.8% every few months. Interest rates at 4.5% ? Where?
I suppose we are mainly feeling the weakness of the U.S. economy when tourism is soft, here. I've seen noticeable increases in prices of many of the things that we buy, and the official inflation figures would seem on the low side to me, too; but, then, I get the same feeling back in the states- that the official figures understate the effective rate of inflation. Condos and other properties continue to sell, here, while the U.S. housing market is in the doldrums, and I haven't seen any true softness in prices, here, either. We had two condos bought out from under us by Mexican buyers willing to pay "full price" while we were negotiating for a lower than asking price. After that experience, we ended up paying asking price, too, when the seller refused to budge, on a third property. So, it's hard to get a read on the true state of things here, relative to the recent past, except for those months immediately following the swine flu crisis.
