Global inflation is finally coming off the boil, even if it’s set to remain far too hot for the liking of the world’s central bankers.
As economic growth slows, prices for key raw materials — from oil to copper and wheat — have cooled in recent weeks, taking pressure off the cost of manufactured goods and food. And it’s getting cheaper to move those things around, as supply chains slowly recover from the pandemic.
After the worst price shock in decades, the speed at which relief arrives will vary, with Europe in particular still struggling. But for the world as a whole, analysts at JPMorgan Chase estimate that consumer-price inflation will fall to 5.1% in the second half of this year — roughly half of what it was in the six months through June.