Weekly Market Recap – June 3, 2024

Brent crude oil prices closed at $82 per barrel on Friday, and while they have backed off from their springtime peak, they still look high relative to where they were five years ago, before the pandemic. However, it’s important to recognize that almost all prices and wage rates are significantly higher today compared to five years ago. Between May 2019 and last Friday, Brent crude prices rose by 23%, but we estimate that U.S. headline CPI has risen by the same amount. Therefore, in a very real sense, $82 per barrel is the new $63 per barrel.

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