Just because firms don't prefer to think about pricing in terms of cost-plus doesn't mean that their actual costs are "irrelevant". If people feel that a compan

Just because firms don't prefer to think about pricing in terms of cost-plus doesn't mean that their actual costs are "irrelevant". If people feel that a company is pricing their goods unfairly, shouldn't they move their spending elsewhere? If companies with healthy and growing margins fire people with memos citing challenging economic headwinds, shouldn't people call BS? If companies raising their prices dramatically for the same goods, and perhaps for products which were developed decades ago and simultaneously lobby against regulations which they say risk stifling "innovation", shouldn't people tell their representatives exactly why those corporations are not credible? The idea that discussing widening margins is "irrelevant" because companies adjust prices based on consumers' price sensitivity seems exactly backwards to me: the fact that profits are so high indicates that consumers have been overly-credulous and ought to be more price sensitive. And zooming out, the accelerated transfer of wealth from consumers to shareholders happens because we consumers collectively allow it. Reporting which highlights the rising profits relative to other factors can be part of what enables a course-correction.