With so many ways to show one’s love on Valentine’s Day, you may want to choose carefully, as some popular gifts and activities have been especially vulnerable to inflation over the past year.
Real estate website Point2 analyzed inflation’s effect on 14 Valentine’s Day mainstays and found that this year’s holiday is set to be the most expensive on record.
Thinking about grabbing a flight for a romantic weekend getaway? That will run you an extra 16.03% on average above last year’s prices. How about staying home and going out to a restaurant for a romantic dinner? A three-course meal at a decent restaurant will come with a nearly 17% inflation surcharge, the study found.
Considering skipping the restaurant and relaxing together in front of a romantic movie? Well, the average theater ticket is 6.47% more expensive this year, the study found.
Ok, so maybe you’ll stay at home and make dinner – if you like sirloin steak, the cut of meat is actually 8% cheaper on average than it was last year, which is good news because a bottle of wine is up 3.52%, and those romantic candles are nearly 9% more expensive on average.
As the meal winds down and it’s time to pull out the gifts, many of the staple presents such as gold (5.89%), perfume (8.97%), chocolate boxes (8.47%), silver (5.05%) and a dozen roses (3.94%), have a higher price tag this year. Perhaps this is the year to go big in the gift department and spring for a diamond, which is actually 9.6% less than it was last year, the study found.
According to December 2022 numbers, inflation in the United States has slowed but remains high, and was 6.5% above the same month in 2021.
Inflation and the economy were front and center during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday, in which he leaned on a better-than-expected January jobs report.
“Jobs are coming back, pride is coming back because of the choices we made in the last two years,” Biden said. “This is a blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America and make a real difference in your lives.”
Republicans hammered Biden after the speech, doing their best to try to pin the increase in prices at the pump and in grocery stores on the president and Democratic leadership.
Point2 used statistics from the Bureau of Labor, United States Department of Agriculture, the Consumer Price Index and others to determine the average increase in 14 common Valentine’s Day items. See their website for more on the methodology.