June 02, 2015
It is amazing how economic reporters continue to repeat nonsense about deflation. As fans of arithmetic and logic everywhere know, deflation is bad for the same reason a lower rate of inflation is bad. It raises the real interest rate at a time when we want a lower real interest rate and it increases the real value of debt when we want to see the real value of debt reduced. (The real interest rate is the nominal interest minus the inflation rate.)
Crossing zero means nothing, which should be obvious to anyone who has given the issue a moment’s thought. The inflation rate is a sum of millions of different price changes. When it is near zero, many prices are already falling. When it crosses zero and becomes negative, that means a somewhat larger share of prices are falling. So what? Since prices are quality adjusted, the prices people pay may still be rising.
Anyhow, the NYT added to the silliness yet again when it told readers that price declines in the euro zone due to falling energy prices are a potential problem. Let’s think this one through for a moment. Suppose that prices are rising at a 1.0 percent annual rate. Given the weakness of the euro zone economy that is lower than would be desirable, but let’s use that as a starting point.
Now let’s have energy prices fall at a 40 percent annual rate so that prices are now falling at a 1.0 percent annual rate. Let’s assume that the rate of inflation for non-energy prices has not changed.
Now how does this make things worse? People used to be pay more for gas and heat, with most of that money ending up outside of the euro zone. With the lower prices, this money stays in their pocket for them to spend on other things. In terms of debt burdens, if wages are rising in step with inflation, then the real value of debt to workers is being eroded at exactly the same rate as before. And since non-energy prices are still rising at the same pace, the real interest rate for investment outside the energy sector has not changed.
So what is the problem? It would be great if the NYT could get someone other than deflation cultists to do their economic reporting.
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