Another Sign that Inflation at the Retail Level is About to Hit

NyPo reports:

A new worry has emerged for cash-strapped shoppers: higher clothing prices.

That's right, on top of a shaky job market, high unemployment and little wage growth, consumers may soon be forced to dig deeper when clothes shopping.

The bad news bombshell was dropped yesterday by Jones Group -- the New York-based apparel company that makes department-store staples like Nine West and Anne Klein -- which warned that the rising cost of manufacturing, shipping and raw materials, like cotton, is squeezing margins, and that retailers will likely be forced to raise prices to shore up profits.

Cotton prices are up more than 64%, this year---before Bernanke starts QE2!