TechPulse USA

A shopper compares vegetable prices in a US supermarket produce aisle. Image: TechPulse USA Published September 19, 2026 · By TechPulse USA There is a particular sticker shock that happens in the cereal aisle: you grab the same box you have bought for years, glance at the price, and do the math twice. It is right. And this week, the Federal Reserve told America not to expect relief anytime soon. On Wednesday, the Fed raised rates for the first time in three years — a 25-basis-point hike to 3.75%–4.00% . Chair Kevin Warsh was blunt about why: "This summer's inflation readings do not tell me that underlying trends have meaningfully improved." Warsh noted inflation has hurt Americans for five years , and 16 of 18 FOMC participants expect another hike this year . CNN fact-checked President Trump's claim that "almost every item" is getting cheaper — the reality shoppers feel is stubbornly high prices. With crude oil above $100 a barrel , up nearly 15% in ...

Two Americas, one forecast: frost advisories up north, triple digits down south. Image: TechPulse USA Published September 19, 2026 · By TechPulse USA Two Americas, one forecast: frost warnings are popping up from Vermont to North Dakota while thermometers across Texas and Oklahoma still flirt with triple digits . The good news, forecasters say, is that the worst is over for most of the nation. "The most intense heat of the season is pretty much finished," said Chad Merrill, senior meteorologist and long-range forecaster at AccuWeather. "We're starting to see signs of fall." The heat dome is cracking — but only on one side of the map For weeks, a massive heat dome has sat over the center of the country. Now it's starting to give: "This massive heat dome looks like it's starting to break down," Merrill said, as storms move into the drought-stricken central US. The National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center agrees the e...