10 things that will get more expensive this year
America may have avoided the $8 gallon of milk, but there are still plenty of products set to get pricier in 2013.
Together with the Fiscal Times, discount website dealnews compiled a list of items likely to rise in cost in the year ahead, including everything from cars to copper.
Take a look at the products about to undergo a price hike in the list below:
1. Cars: Strict fuel-efficiency standards issued earlier this year by the Obama administration have required automakers to upgrade their engines, hiking up prices for new cars.
2. College tuition:Once seen as a more affordable option, state schools will likely see increases in tuition. Because of these high education costs, many states won’t be able to subsidize as much of their students’ tuition, meaning students could end up paying almost 5 percent more for in-state tuition this year and 4 percent more in fees.
3. Copper: Copper prices may rise this year due to a new fund to trade copper approved by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), which could lead to a scarcity of the metal. This could mean a hike in prices for a wide variety of copper-made products including wire, water pipes, pots, kettles and equipment for brewing beer.
4. Daily Deals: Because of low profits and a large number of competitors, daily deal websites like Groupon and Living Social may soon begin to focus on product deals rather than services, such as spa treatments.
5. Groceries: The effects of last summer’s drought will hit the grocery store shelves this year. Lower wheat yields will result in increased prices for bakery products and cereal while meat, poultry, and dairy prices are also expected to rise. According to the USDA, food prices should rise between 3.5 percent and 4 percent in 2013.
6. Health insurance: Employers will face higher premiums this year as employee health care premiums are expected to rise an average of 6 percent.
7. Shipping costs: Shipping costs from both UPS and FedEx will see hikes of almost 5 percent in 2013.
8. Smartphones: American consumers have long been getting great deals from their mobile phone providers but all that will come to an end in 2013. This year, T-Mobile will end the discounts and start charging full price for its phones.
9. Computers: As tablets gain more and more popularity, computers are going up in price. Apple’s new notebooks with retina displays are some of the highest models out there, dealnews reports.
10. Home entertainment systems: High-end electronics won’t see any dips in prices this year. According to the Consumer Electronics Association, Ultra HD TVs will go for as much as $25,000.
[via Fiscal Times]
Image: Matt MacGillvray/Flickr
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com