CURATED READS FOR GEN Z—AND THEIR Z-CURIOUS COLLEAGUES

first up

If you or a loved one has felt like crying at a gas station pump recently, you’re not alone.

In 1999, the year I was born, a gallon of gas cost, on average, $1.17 in the US. That’s a far cry from last week’s national average of $4.50 a gallon.

Gas prices have increased as a result of inflation and the war in Ukraine, with US record highs last month at $5.03 a gallon. While that’s bad for everyone, inflation hits Gen Z—the lowest-earning generation—especially hard. 

A little math problem: if you’re driving a car that’s ten years old, you might get about 20 miles to the gallon. If your commute is just ten miles, then at $5 per gallon, you’d be spending $25 a week just to get to work—that’s 8.6 percent of your income for a full-time, minimum-wage job. 

(Plus, $5 per gallon is considered affordable compared with costs in other countries: the same quantity of gas now costs a whopping $11.37 in Hong Kong, which has the highest gas prices in the world.)     

It’s no wonder that Gen Z has struggled the most when paying off cars this year, according to Fortune. Or that we have the fewest licensed drivers and the lowest interest in car ownership 

Another big factor for low car ownership among Gen Zers is the popularity of ridesharing; more than 40 million trips are booked on the two largest e-hailing apps every day.

Though Gen Z likes to joke about dramatically staring out the backseat window like in a movie—“Where are you headed?” “Home. I’m going home”—we really love ridesharing because it’s easy, there are no parking or fuel costs, and we’re uniquely comfortable paying for access instead of ownership.  

And for those cars that do sell, more might be electric vehicles (EVs), which is at least a small upside for the planet. Plus, seeing EV owners gloat with vanity plates like “YPMPGAS” and “NOMOGAS” is kind of funny—though I’ll be laughing a lot more if gas prices drop a few dollars too.  

QUOTE US ON IT

“We’re all experiencing just how sensitive a doubling of the price in oil or doubling in the price of food is to the spending patterns of the lower-income parts of the population. It’s very easy for higher-income people to say, ‘You know, this is part of the fight,’ but it really pinches other segments of the population.”

—Sven Smit, senior partner and chair of the McKinsey Global Institute, on the war in Ukraine’s effect on oil prices

Wait, don’t scroll 

Not a flying DeLorean—but close. Flight company Joby Aviation is betting big on air taxis—it plans to use an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as a flying rideshare service, taking off as soon as 2024. 

Pump it up. Need an inflation primer? Check out these seven charts to learn more about how inflation is flipping the script across food prices, wages, and more. 

It’s not just cars. The price of jet fuel has increased more than 90 percent since the start of 2022—but that might not be an entirely bad thing for airlines. 

Not us; still great 

Can we just meet there? Inflation is also hitting dating hard—with prices rising for everything from gas to transportation to food, it costs more than ever to try and find love. [Bloomberg]

Can I borrow the car? Nearly 30 percent of adult Gen Zers are living at home with their parents to save on housing and food costs, and they have no plans of moving out. [NYT] 

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DISTRACT YOURSELF FROM YOUR FINANCIAL WOES 

— Edited by Sarah Skinner, Gen Z curation editor, New York