CapnZapp
Legend
It should be obvious, but you need to ask your DM if he or she holds back on the published loot.What does chock full mean to you? There is nowhere near what was in previous editions. We're going through Hoard right now, one ring by fifth level. We've been searching every group of enemies we find. You supposedly found a ton? What level are you? So I imagine every character in the group must have what...three magic items each by what level? Explain what chock full means in terms of per character by what level and how that constitutes sufficient magic for an economy.
In order for us to compare apples to apples, please read through the published adventure module (rather than relate your personal game experiences).
In fact, you don't even have to do that: a quick search reveals several threads on these very forums listing the loot that WotC have seen fit to hand out to adventurers participating in the official adventures, you know, the adventures that showcase the game and set our expectations.
But just to start with, Lost Mine takes you from level 1 through 4 (reaching lvl 5), and hands out at least one +1 weapon and one +1 armor, boots of striding and springing, gauntlets of ogre power, a ring of protection, two staffs, and at least one wand. That is in addition to potions and scrolls, and thousands of gold.
Even if you divide this haul by four - and even if you don't assume any given group actually finds everything - it adds up to at least two solid items per character.
Alternatively, the adventure sets the expectation for one solid item every other level.
I'd say the published adventures effectively shatter any notion that magic items are "rare" or "priceless". They pop up as frequently as in d20, I'd say, so I expect WotC to provide an economy sooner than later.
What the adventures do not is to provide for any meaningful way to spend gold. In fact, they read as if they were written with the traditional magic item economy in mind; as if the gold could actually be spent on stuff, like in previous editions.