Economics

CHAPTER17

Inflation and Deflation

In This Chapter

• Inflation: the causes, measurement, and cures
• Causes and consequences of deflation
• The causes of hyperinflation
• Stagflation: when unemployment and inflation rise together
• Chronic deflation and the danger of depression

“Consumer prices in the euro zone are rising at the slowest pace since the depths of the global financial crisis, fueling new fears that too little inflation, rather than too much, will threaten Europe’s fragile recovery and the world’s.” So began an article on the front page of the November 1, 2013, Wall Street Journal. “So, what’s the problem with too little inflation?” you might ...