Higher prices and interest rates are pressuring consumers and companies, Stephanie Pomboy says. Meanwhile, businesses are suffering a "migraine" in the form of higher debt costs, the Macro Mavens founder and president said. She pointed to the pressure on consumer spending, the limited supply of labor, and striking workers raising companies' costs by driving up wages and securing settlements. Inflation surged to a 40-year high of 9.1% last summer, spurring the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates from nearly zero to north of 5.25% today — a 22-year high. Higher rates can ease upward pressure on prices by encouraging saving over spending, hiring, and investing.

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Persons: Stephanie Pomboy, Robert Heller, Pomboy, Paul Krugman, aren't, Heller Organizations: Fed, Service, Fox Business, Federal Reserve, Federal Locations: Wall, Silicon, Pomboy