With inflation soaring, one town in the Southwest is struggling with the highest inflation rates in the U.S.: Midland, Texas.
Sitting between Dallas and El Paso, the town is the title holder as of mid-May for the most drastic inflation in America due to a number of factors, reported Bloomberg Business.
Businesses in Midland are having greater difficulty replacing machinery due to the high prices caused by inflation, according to Bloomberg Business. There are also supply shortages due to the demand for materials.
Midland’s local economy is dependent on oil, making inflation worse for the Texas residents as national oil prices have surged for the past several months.
Due to inflation rates rising, central banks are raising interest rates. Energy prices, as well as the costs of food at local restaurants and gas station rest stops, are increasing, Bloomberg Business reported.
Inflation rates are up 10% for the previous six months in Midland, far higher than the national average, according to Moody’s Analytics Estimates.
REPORTAGE: Welcome to Midland, Texas — where inflation hovers around 10% and milk costs $6 at the local gas station | #OOTT #Permian https://t.co/PKQJYzseJo
— Javier Blas (@JavierBlas) May 11, 2022
Midland’s cost of living in general has skyrocketed in the last few months.
The town is far away from major cities in Texas, thus making everything that much more difficult and expensive to get. (RELATED: Prices Are Still Rising Despite The Fed Saying Everything’s Under Control)
As a result of the war between Ukraine and Russia, low borrowing costs, an increase in government spending, lockdowns in China and other lingering COVID-19 issues, remote towns in the South and Midwest are suffering the most, according to the analysis.
National inflation has been on the rise in recent months, with a surge of 8.3% in April, according to a Department of Labor report.