The more important point is that profit is an assumed good, an end worthy of itself. No liberal economist is ever going to tell you a business or economy is too profitable: that's the point of all this. Thus when a firm raises prices to sustain or increase it's rate of profit, that's just business; a decision so basic as to escape scrutiny. But if labor demands more pay/benefits and eats into the rate of profit? Well now that's driving up inflation! Those greedy workers just don't know when they've got enough! Pay no attention to the decision by Capital to raise prices to sustain the rate of profit, that's the only reasonable thing they could do! Their privilege in society must be preserved!
We could get off this stupid treadmill if we nationalized mature industries and ran them at cost for the public good - but there's no profit in that, so what's the point?
That's an estimation. Some companies may be that profitable, but the economy overall in the US is less.
https://www.fitchratings.com/research/corporate-finance/us-corporate-profit-declines-likely-for-some-sectors-as-gdp-slows-17-04-2023#:~:text=Corporate%20profit%20before%20interest%2C%20taxes,Bureau%20of%20Economic%20Analysis%20data.
The more important point is that profit is an assumed good, an end worthy of itself. No liberal economist is ever going to tell you a business or economy is too profitable: that's the point of all this. Thus when a firm raises prices to sustain or increase it's rate of profit, that's just business; a decision so basic as to escape scrutiny. But if labor demands more pay/benefits and eats into the rate of profit? Well now that's driving up inflation! Those greedy workers just don't know when they've got enough! Pay no attention to the decision by Capital to raise prices to sustain the rate of profit, that's the only reasonable thing they could do! Their privilege in society must be preserved!
We could get off this stupid treadmill if we nationalized mature industries and ran them at cost for the public good - but there's no profit in that, so what's the point?