As a result, lower-priced French, German and Japanese goods have become more popular in a market that was once dominated by American products.

Inflation is going to be impossible in any country with open borders: lower-priced goods will flood in from low-wage countries.

Some analysts said high interest rates were turning consumers away from expensive items, like autos, and sending them to lower-priced goods.

Suddenly the word value crept into their vocabulary, and lower-priced goods, down to a few hundred dollars, adorned the booths.

The underlying assumption is that when consumers are forced by inflation to switch to lower-priced goods their standard of living remains the same.

If it does, American corporations will find their margins squeezed as they are forced to compete with these lower-priced goods.

When we start buying lower-priced goods from abroad, it often means American jobs are lost.

Perhaps significantly, Sears is said to be pushing lower-priced goods, to become more competitive.

But, she said, that move not only gave consumers lower-priced goods, it also spurred innovation here and led, eventually, to better-paying, higher-value jobs.

Placing more emphasis on career clothes and less on lower-priced goods, these stores are leaving a void for mass marketers to fill.