Greedflation 2.0: How Tariffs Could Become an Excuse for Corporate Price Gouging (with Hal Singer)

During COVID, corporations blamed supply chain shocks for rising prices while quietly raising prices higher than costs, thereby boosting their profits to record levels. We know they did this because they bragged about doing it on corporate earnings calls. Economist Hal Singer warns that Trump’s proposed tariffs could spark a repeat, giving corporations another “golden opportunity” to jack up prices under the guise of higher costs. He explains why tools like antitrust enforcement and interest rate hikes aren’t enough to stop price gouging—and why failing to curb greedflation could carry a steep political price. Hal Singer is an economist, antitrust expert, and Managing Director at Econ One Research, where he specializes in competition policy, regulatory economics, and consumer protection. He’s a professor at the University of Utah and a leading voice on market power, price gouging, and the intersection of antitrust and inequality. Social Media: ⁠@halsinger.bsky.social⁠ ⁠@HalSinger⁠ Further reading:  ⁠Hal’s Twitter thread on the potential for companies to exploit Trump’s tariffs to raise prices higher than their costs. ⁠ Hal’s recent OpEd in The Sling: ⁠Progressives Need a New Toolkit to Fight Inflation⁠  ⁠How Corporations “Get Away With Murder” to Inflate Prices on Rent, Food, and Electricity⁠ ⁠How Trump Is Helping Price Gougers Exploit His Tariffs⁠ ⁠President John F. Kennedy News Conference on April 11, 1962⁠ ⁠Antitrust Policy for the Conservative⁠ Website: ⁠http://pitchforkeconomics.com⁠ Instagram: ⁠@pitchforkeconomics⁠ Threads: ⁠pitchforkeconomics⁠ Bluesky: ⁠@pitchforkeconomics.bsky.social⁠ Twitter: ⁠@PitchforkEcon⁠, ⁠@NickHanauer⁠, ⁠@civicaction⁠ YouTube: ⁠@pitchforkeconomics⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠Pitchfork Economics⁠ Substack: ⁠The Pitch