Inflation by Mark Blyth and Nicolò Fraccaroli

INFLATION by Mark Blyth (Austerity) and Nicolò Fraccaroli focuses on a complex economic concept and certainly makes the surrounding debate more accessible for the educated reader. Fraccaroli, now an economist with the World Bank, studied with Blyth, an economics professor at Brown University. Their academic background is evident in the care they take to present and outline their arguments, saying that “identifying the causes of inflation was key to deciding on the next step: how to fight inflation.” They point to “four main stories …. Each of them identifies a different villain that caused prices to go up: the government, the workers, the disruptions from the Ukraine war and COVID-19, and greedy corporations.” They ultimately argue that “most of the time inflations are caused by supply shocks” with varying impact by class, race, and geography which means that some people ultimately benefit from inflation (hence, the subtitle: “A Guide for Users and Losers”). The first chapter looks at “five things they don’t tell you about inflation” and contrasts the use of rhetorical stories with (sometimes sparse) empirical evidence. Subsequent chapters question an overreliance on 1970s theory that interest rates should be main controller of inflation; others assert the low likelihood of hyperinflation. Reluctant to make predictions for the future, Blyth and Fraccaroli do point to possible contributors to why an inflationary future is the more likely outcome: climate change; de-globalization; and an aging population. Described by Publishers Weekly as “essential reading for anyone looking to understand current debates around rising prices,” INFLATION includes extensive Notes (approximately twenty-five percent of the text) and an Index. For a brief overview of Blyth’s thinking see the interview below from earlier this year: