On Instacart: same store, same item, different price
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What did the study reveal about pricing on Instacart?
Are you paying more or maybe less at the same retailer for the same paper towels or English muffins than your friends and neighbors? I'm David Brancaccio in Los Angeles. A new report finds different customers were charged different prices for identical products ordered through the online grocery delivery service Instacart. The new study was released by several consumer groups that designed a shopping experiment with hundreds of volunteers. The study was conducted by Consumer Reports and the Progressive Group's Groundwork Collaborative and More Perfect Union. They ran an experiment with more than 400 volunteers who shopped on Instacart for the same 18 to 20 products at the same time from the same stores.
The shoppers took screenshots of the prices at checkout but didn't click the buy button. Consumer Reports says about 75 percent of the products they checked were offered at different prices to different customers, varying by as much as 23 percent. The report says based on what Instacart says a typical family of four spends on groceries, the differences could add up to about $1,200 per year. Consumer Reports says every one of their experimental shoppers was subject to Instacart's algorithmic price experiments.
How does dynamic pricing affect consumers shopping online?
Instacart says retailers control the prices, and a small subset was using Instacart's Eversight technology to run limited online pricing tests. I'm Nancy Marshall-Genzer for Marketplace. Here's my not-so-rash prediction now. The Federal Reserve will lower a key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point just over four hours from now. More interesting, I think, will be how the Fed chief frames the need to bolster the job market versus the need to control inflation. Susan Schmidt is portfolio manager at Exchange Capital Resources. I'll be looking at the information that, of course, comes out in the press release after the announcement and, importantly, the dot plot. That'll give us a sense of what the governors are thinking about for 2026.
And the market's going to be keen into that to think about where interest rates might be moving. It's the new year that's very much on the minds of Fed watchers.
What predictions are being made about interest rates?
Remember that the Trump administration has been very positive on lowering interest rates, trying to help stimulate the economy. The Fed has been cautious with Chairman Powell worrying about the underlying data and what that means for inflation. So we'll see this balance play out. Investors are going to shift that focus to what happens in 2026. And what does this mean for interest rates going forward?
The price of silver has hit a fresh record, rising above $60 per ounce for the first time. It's up another 1.1 percent this morning, $61.51. The BBC's William Lee Adams reports. Traders in the precious metal are reacting to an expected U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate cut on Wednesday.
How does the Federal Reserve's decision impact the economy?
But experts say there's another reason for the high prices. That's the strong demand for the metal from the technology industry, which has caused a global shortage. Silver conducts electricity better than gold or copper and is widely used in the manufacture of electric vehicles and solar panels. And silver isn't the only metal hitting record highs in 2025. In November, gold crossed the $4,000 an ounce mark for the first time, and the price of platinum and palladium have also climbed this year as traders respond to global economic uncertainty. I'm the BBC's William Lee Adams for Marketplace. Today is the ceremony to honor this year's Nobel Prize recipients, including the three economists being honored for their work on how technology done right can drive economic growth.
Think artificial intelligence, for instance. The three economics honorees today are Philippe Aguillon of Collège de France, the INSEAD Business School and the London School of Economics. Also, Joel Mokyr, a professor at Northwestern.
What are the implications of AI on economic growth?
Also, Peter Howitt, professor emeritus at Browne. I spoke to Professor Howard, starting with some congratulations. Thank you very much. Regarding AI and prosperity, is this time different?
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What did the study reveal about pricing on Instacart?
0:01–1:15
2
How does dynamic pricing affect consumers shopping online?
1:15–2:08
3
What predictions are being made about interest rates?
2:08–3:04
4
How does the Federal Reserve's decision impact the economy?
3:04–4:01
5
What are the implications of AI on economic growth?
4:01–4:55
6
Is AI going to create more jobs or lead to job loss?
4:55–5:56
7
What concerns exist regarding the regulation of AI technology?
5:56–7:41