Coffee, ketchup and Nike Air Max: it's the COVID consumer economy

REUTERS: Instant coffee, ketchup, Lululemon yoga pants and Nike Air Max sneakers are all in. Bottled water, pricey diapers and Burberry luxury trench coats are out.Advertisement"Everything we knew about supply and demand, we can essentially throw out the window because consumer behavior has changed completely," said Piotr Dworczak, assistant professor of economics at Northwestern University.

Yet it's a complex picture, and some of the changes in behavior seem counter-intuitive during a time of deep economic uncertainty. Graphic: Price vs unit sales comparison on a basket of goods from April to August - https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/yxmvjnbmwvr/Priceper cent20vs.per cent20volumeper cent20comparisonper cent20onper cent20aper cent20basketper cent20ofper cent20goodsper cent20fromper cent20Aprilper cent20toper cent20August.pngShoppers paid roughly 8per cent more on average for JM Smucker's instant coffees, including Folger's and Dunkin', at bricks-and-mortar stores in the four weeks to Aug.

JM Smucker said it did not raise prices of its instant coffees in the four weeks to Aug. 8, but did cut back on some promotions for in-demand products. Kraft Heinz declined to comment, but said during earnings in July that second-quarter prices went up as it pulled some offers and discounts for scarce products. Tyson did not respond to a request for comment.

"You're at home anyway so you're not sending your child off somewhere in a diaper that fails," said Rao. Meanwhile, the price of Louis Vuitton's Neverfull MM Monogram handbag has risen 5per cent on its website since the start of May. In July, Louis Vuitton owner LVMH said sales momentum had picked up since June, even as its star label raised prices for a third time during the pandemic.Demand for a Burberry woman's trench coat has declined, with only 3per cent of online stocks sold in July versus 14per cent a year earlier.

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