Edition of Oct. 26, 2026
Financial stability across the U.S.
Has anything changed that affects my ability to earn and cover what I need?
Are the things I need becoming harder to afford or obtain?
- Electricity prices up 3.4%
- Gasoline up 41.9%
- Food-at-home prices up 1.8%
Explain this to me more
When the next numbers come
New data comes out Oct. 27, 2026.
What we don't measure yet
We don't read rent, health care or car costs yet.
How these numbers are gathered
Survey data: EIA's monthly survey of electric utilities.
Survey data: EIA's weekly survey of retail gasoline and diesel prices.
Survey data: BLS's Consumer Price Index (a survey of prices at stores).
The numbers we read
- Residential electricity prices nationally: 18.16 cents per kWh in 2026-08, up 3.4% from a year earlier (17.57).
- Regular gasoline nationally: $4.284 a gallon in the week of 2026-10-19, up 41.9% from a year earlier ($3.019).
- Food-at-home prices nationally in 2026-09: up 1.8% from a year earlier.
For context. Not part of the answer.
- Household bankruptcy filings nationally in the 12 months to 2026-Q3: 594,057, up 11.4% from a year earlier (533,337).
Sources and methods
- Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index (CPI-U), food at home. BLS.gov cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from BLS.gov. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
Weekly answers in plain words are coming. For now, the numbers come first.
Is my ability to earn getting stronger or weaker?
Is it getting harder to find work in my field?
Choose a field
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occ:accounting
- Job postings in your field down 4.1%
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occ:administrative-assistance
- Job postings in your field down 1.5%
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occ:architecture
- Job postings in your field up 4.3%
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occ:arts-entertainment
- Job postings in your field up 10.4%
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occ:aviation
- Job postings in your field up 11.5%
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occ:banking-finance
- Job postings in your field up 11.7%
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occ:childcare
- Job postings in your field down 10.6%
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occ:civil-engineering
- Job postings in your field up 6.1%
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occ:cleaning-sanitation
- Job postings in your field up 2.5%
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occ:community-social-service
- Job postings in your field down 5.6%
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occ:construction
- Job postings in your field up 6.5%
-
occ:customer-service
- Job postings in your field down 1.3%
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occ:data-analytics
- Job postings in your field up 7.6%
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occ:dental
- Job postings in your field down 14.5%
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occ:driving
- Job postings in your field down 3.6%
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occ:education-instruction
- Job postings in your field down 8.8%
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occ:electrical-engineering
- Job postings in your field up 33.1%
-
occ:food-preparation-service
- Job postings in your field down 3.2%
-
occ:hospitality-tourism
- Job postings in your field down 5.1%
-
occ:human-resources
- Job postings in your field up 17.5%
-
occ:industrial-engineering
- Job postings in your field up 36.2%
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occ:installation-maintenance
- Job postings in your field up 3.6%
-
occ:insurance
- Job postings in your field up 3.9%
-
occ:it-infrastructure-operations-support
- Job postings in your field up 5.1%
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occ:it-systems-solutions
- Job postings in your field up 12.1%
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occ:legal
- Job postings in your field up 2.9%
-
occ:loading-stocking
- Job postings in your field up 10.1%
-
occ:logistic-support
- Job postings in your field up 7.2%
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occ:management
- Job postings in your field up 7.7%
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occ:marketing
- Job postings in your field down 2.6%
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occ:mechanical-engineering
- Job postings in your field up 42.5%
-
occ:media-communications
- Job postings in your field up 5.6%
-
occ:medical-information
- Job postings in your field down 7.2%
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occ:medical-technician
- Job postings in your field down 3.0%
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occ:nursing
- Job postings in your field down 1.0%
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occ:personal-care-home-health
- Job postings in your field up 0.6%
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occ:pharmacy
- Job postings in your field up 5.3%
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occ:physicians-surgeons
- Job postings in your field up 8.5%
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occ:production-manufacturing
- Job postings in your field up 12.9%
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occ:project-management
- Job postings in your field up 16.4%
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occ:retail
- Job postings in your field up 5.0%
-
occ:sales
- Job postings in your field up 0.8%
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occ:scientific-research-development
- Job postings in your field up 19.7%
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occ:security-public-safety
- Job postings in your field up 3.4%
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occ:social-science
- Job postings in your field down 6.9%
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occ:software-development
- Job postings in your field up 21.1%
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occ:therapy
- Job postings in your field up 3.5%
Explain this to me more
The numbers we read
- Job postings for Accounting nationally are down 4.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Administrative Assistance nationally are down 1.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Architecture nationally are up 4.3% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Arts & Entertainment nationally are up 10.4% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Aviation nationally are up 11.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Banking & Finance nationally are up 11.7% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Childcare nationally are down 10.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Civil Engineering nationally are up 6.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Cleaning & Sanitation nationally are up 2.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Community & Social Service nationally are down 5.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Construction nationally are up 6.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Customer Service nationally are down 1.3% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Data & Analytics nationally are up 7.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Dental nationally are down 14.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Driving nationally are down 3.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Education & Instruction nationally are down 8.8% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Electrical Engineering nationally are up 33.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Food Preparation & Service nationally are down 3.2% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Hospitality & Tourism nationally are down 5.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Human Resources nationally are up 17.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Industrial Engineering nationally are up 36.2% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Installation & Maintenance nationally are up 3.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Insurance nationally are up 3.9% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for IT Infrastructure, Operations & Support nationally are up 5.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for IT Systems & Solutions nationally are up 12.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Legal nationally are up 2.9% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Loading & Stocking nationally are up 10.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Logistic Support nationally are up 7.2% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Management nationally are up 7.7% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Marketing nationally are down 2.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Mechanical Engineering nationally are up 42.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Media & Communications nationally are up 5.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Medical Information nationally are down 7.2% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Medical Technician nationally are down 3.0% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Nursing nationally are down 1.0% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Personal Care & Home Health nationally are up 0.6% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Pharmacy nationally are up 5.3% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Physicians & Surgeons nationally are up 8.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Production & Manufacturing nationally are up 12.9% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Project Management nationally are up 16.4% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Retail nationally are up 5.0% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Sales nationally are up 0.8% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Scientific Research & Development nationally are up 19.7% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Security & Public Safety nationally are up 3.4% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Social Science nationally are down 6.9% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Software Development nationally are up 21.1% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
- Job postings for Therapy nationally are up 3.5% from a year earlier (as of 2026-10-16).
Sources and methods
- Indeed Hiring Lab, CC BY 4.0
Questions we can't answer yet
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Could a change disrupt my work, home or essential services?
We can't yet tell job cuts that are planned from ones that have happened. We have no data on power or water outages.
-
What protects me, and where am I exposed?
We don't yet have data on how many people have savings, health cover or jobless pay.
-
What changed enough to deserve attention?
Its answer would say which changes this week deserve attention, and why.
-
How much could it matter, and when?
We can't yet say how many people a change could reach, or when.
For your business
Are my costs eating my margin?
- Business electricity prices up 4.3%
- Diesel up 73.4%
Explain this to me more
How these numbers are gathered
Survey data: EIA's monthly survey of electric utilities.
Survey data: EIA's weekly survey of retail gasoline and diesel prices.
The numbers we read
- Commercial electricity prices nationally: 14.47 cents per kWh in 2026-08, up 4.3% from a year earlier (13.87).
- Diesel nationally: $6.276 a gallon in the week of 2026-10-19, up 73.4% from a year earlier ($3.620).
Can I afford to borrow what I need?
- Ten-year Treasury yield up 0.98 points
- Fed target rate down 0.25 points
Explain this to me more
When the next numbers come
New data comes out Oct. 28, 2026.
The numbers we read
- The 10-year Treasury yield: 5.00% as of 2026-10-23, up 0.98 points from a year earlier (4.02%).
- The federal funds target: 4.00% since 2026-09-17, down 0.25 points from a year ago (4.25%).
Every number shows its date. Before we publish, we match each number to a fresh read of our own data.
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How to cite
FearMetric, "Financial stability across the U.S.," edition of Oct. 26, 2026, https://fearmetric.com/week/2026-10-26/.
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Why you can trust this
- Before we publish, we match each number to a fresh read of our own data.
- We say so when we can't measure something. How it works
- When we get something wrong, we add a dated correction to the page. Past weeks