From $6 eggs to $50,000 cars, these charts show how inflation has defined the past 5 years

The past five years have been defined less by any single price shock than by the persistence of rising prices across everyday life. The headline examples — $6 eggs and $50,000 cars — illustrate how inflation has spread from groceries to big-ticket purchases, shaping household budgets and, in turn, consumer confidence.

That confidence matters for markets because consumer spending drives roughly two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. When households feel squeezed, they tend to adjust spending patterns, trade down, or delay major purchases. Those shifts can show up in retail earnings, auto sales, and broader growth data.

What to watch: whether price pressures continue to cool, and whether confidence recovers alongside them. For investors, the key takeaway is that inflation is not just a data point — it is a behavioral force that influences how consumers spend, save, and plan.