Wages are surging across the rich world

NOT LONG ago pundits obsessively checked the latest statistics on covid-19 cases. Now they are doing the same with the inflation numbers. American consumer prices rose by 5.4% in the year to September, according to figures published on October 13th, exceeding forecasts. A survey from the New York Federal Reserve released the previous day showed a small pickup in consumers’ inflation expectations. In its semi-annual report on the global economy the IMF warned that the prospects for inflation were “highly uncertain”. Soaring energy costs will push up consumer prices in the near term. Pay, too, is surging, as red-hot demand runs up against a shortage of workers. Does it stand to fuel further price rises?