Halloween candy costs more: prices are up 7.7% in a year

Warm-up

About how much do you spend on snacks and treats in a typical week?

• Nothing
• $1 to $5
• $6 to $15
• More than $15

Top story

Halloween was Saturday, and the candy cost more this year. The government says prices for candy and gum rose 7.7% in the 12 months through September. Prices for everything people buy rose 3.7% over the same time, so candy rose about twice as fast. That is inflation: the same thing costs more than it did before.

The National Retail Federation expects a record $13.5 billion of Halloween spending this year, up from $13.1 billion last year. One report says the average price of a Halloween chocolate package is $5.67, up 15.5%. Cocoa is only part of the story. Sugar, packaging, shipping and workers cost more too.

Why it matters to you: If you buy snacks, treats or gifts with your own money, a 7.7% price rise means your dollars buy less candy than they did last fall.

Your money

Turn a percent price rise into dollars

A headline that says "prices up 7.7%" is easier to feel in dollars. To find the new price, multiply the old price by 1 plus the percent as a decimal. For 7.7%, that is 1.077.

Say a bag of candy cost $10 last year. $10 × 1.077 = $10.77. That is 77 cents more. It sounds small, but it adds up if you buy ten bags: $7.70 more over the year.

Before you buy, look at the unit price, the cost per ounce or per piece, on the shelf tag. A bigger bag or a store brand can cost less per piece, even when the sticker price is higher. And the day after a holiday, leftover candy is often on sale.

Guess the number

Candy prices rose 7.7% in a year. Prices overall rose 3.7%. About how many times faster did candy rise?

Stock of the day

Roblox RBLX −18.1%

Roblox's stock fell about 18% on Friday, closing at $42.99. The company reported third-quarter results on Thursday after the market closed. It beat expectations for bookings, the money players spend in its games, at $1.7 billion. But daily active users, the number of people who play each day, were 138 million, down 9% from a year earlier. Roblox also forecast that bookings in the fourth quarter will fall 10% to 15% from a year earlier, which is a weaker outlook than investors wanted. A stock can drop even after good results when the future looks weaker.

Why would a stock fall when a company beat expectations for the quarter? What would you watch next?

Pop quiz

Class discussion

Candy prices rose twice as fast as prices overall. Should stores and makers keep raising prices when their costs rise, or should they find other ways to cut costs? Make your case.

Last bell

Intel has its worst day in about 50 years

Intel's stock fell about 29% on Friday after the chipmaker gave a weak forecast for the holiday quarter, including a slowdown in the PC market. One report says it was Intel's worst day since 1974. The drop dragged down other chip companies, and the Nasdaq fell about 2.9%.

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