Primerica Household Budget Index™: Declining Gas Prices Support Middle-Income Families’ Ability to Get Ahead
26 November 2024 - 4:00PM
Business Wire
Primerica, Inc. (NYSE: PRI), a leading provider of financial
services and products in the United States and Canada, announced
today the release of the Primerica Household Budget Index™ (HBI™),
a monthly index illustrating the purchasing power of middle-income
households with income between $30,000 and $130,000. In October
2024, the average purchasing power for middle-income families was
103.1%, up from 102.7% in September 2024. This marks the sixth
consecutive month purchasing power rose for middle-income families.
Spending power is at its highest level since January 2021 and is up
3.4% from a year ago. The recent recovery is driven primarily by
gas prices continuing to fall in October.
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241125052332/en/
Primerica Household Budget Index™ - In
October 2024, the average purchasing power for middle-income
families was 103.1%, up from 102.7% in September 2024. This marks
the sixth consecutive month purchasing power rose for middle-income
families. (Graphic: Business Wire)
For more information on the Primerica Household Budget Index™,
visit www.householdbudgetindex.com.
About the Primerica Household Budget Index™ (HBI™)
The Primerica Household Budget Index™ (HBI™) is constructed
monthly on behalf of Primerica by its chief economic consultant Amy
Crews Cutts, PhD, CBE®. The index measures the purchasing power of
middle-income families with household incomes from $30,000 to
$130,000 and is developed using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of the Census, and the Federal Reserve
Bank of Kansas City. The index looks at the cost of necessities
including food, gas, utilities, and health care and earned income
to track differences in inflation and wage growth.
The HBI™ is presented as a percentage. If the index is above
100%, the purchasing power of middle-income families is stronger
than in the baseline period and they may have extra money left over
at the end of the month that can be applied to things like
entertainment, extra savings, or debt reduction. If it is under
100%, households may have to reduce overall spending to levels
below budget, reduce their savings or increase debt to cover
expenses. The HBI™ uses January 2019 as its baseline. This point in
time reflects a recent “normal” economic time prior to the COVID-19
pandemic.
Periodically, prior HBI™ values may be revised due to revisions
in the CPI series and Consumer Expenditure Survey releases by the
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Beginning with the October
2023 release of the HBI™ data, health insurance costs will no
longer be included in the calculation of the HBI™ data as part of
the healthcare component because of some newly acknowledged
methodology that has been used by the BLS to calculate the health
insurance CPI. The health insurance CPI, as calculated by BLS, does
not measure consumer costs of health insurance such as the cost of
premiums paid or a combination of premiums and deductibles, but
rather premium values retained by health insurers we do not believe
it accurately reflects consumer experiences. The healthcare
component will continue to include medical services, prescription
drugs and equipment. Prior published values have been adjusted to
reflect this change. For more information visit
householdbudgetindex.com.
About Primerica, Inc.
Primerica, Inc., headquartered in Duluth, GA, is a leading
provider of financial products and services to middle-income
households in North America. Independent licensed representatives
educate Primerica clients about how to better prepare for a more
secure financial future by assessing their needs and providing
appropriate solutions through term life insurance, which we
underwrite, and mutual funds, annuities and other financial
products, which we distribute primarily on behalf of third parties.
We insured approximately 5.7 million lives and had approximately
2.9 million client investment accounts on December 31, 2023.
Primerica, through its insurance company subsidiaries, was the #2
issuer of Term Life insurance coverage in the United States and
Canada in 2023. Primerica stock is included in the S&P MidCap
400 and the Russell 1000 stock indices and is traded on The New
York Stock Exchange under the symbol “PRI”.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241125052332/en/
Public Relations Gana Ahn, 678-431-9266
gana.ahn@primerica.com
Investor Relations Nicole Russell, 470-564-6663
nicole.russell@primerica.com
Primerica (NYSE:PRI)
Historical Stock Chart
From Nov 2024 to Dec 2024
Primerica (NYSE:PRI)
Historical Stock Chart
From Dec 2023 to Dec 2024