When does inflation good for the economy?

[Guest Stephen]

US will print more money. Would it be good for the global economy?

[purplegiraffe]

The question you are asking is a fairly complex question in economics that I can possibly write a very long answer to but am very lazy to do so. 

 

Some context and clarification: When people say the US is "printing money", it is important to note that it is actually the Federal Reserve, which is their central bank that is doing so. It is an entity much like our MAS but with much greater significance in the global economic system. More importantly, " printing money" does not literally mean that the Central Bank prints hard cash and gives it to the government to spend. To keep it simple, the Federal Reserve "digitally creates money" by buying up government debt and mortgage-backed securities. Fundamentally, the purpose of this is not to allow the US to spend money like nobody's business but to increase the amount of liquidity in financial markets and thereby lowering long-term and shorter-term interest rates, such that companies are able to borrow money at lower interest rates to sustain operations or embark on new business plans, households are able to buy their desired goods and services, in the form of things like cars and houses. This would then stimulate demand in the economy and hopefully allow the Federal Reserve to achieve its goals of "maximum employment" and "price stability". 

 

This is fundamentally good for the global economy in my opinion. The US remains the world's largest economy by nominal GDP in USD (even though China has already taken over if you look at the purchasing power parity measure) and it has the world's largest and deepest financial markets (China's financial markets as well as that of Europe do not even come close to matching the breadth and depth of US financial markets). Financial conditions in the US affects almost every single country in the world that engages in international trade with the rest of the world. So powerful is the economic influence of the US on the rest of the world. I will now take you through two of the key positive effects in my view:

 

1. Stronger demand in the American economy would bolster strong demand for exports in the rest of the world, as the US imports a lot of its goods from other parts of the world. More houses and more cars being built would mean more imports of steel, more imports of cement, more imports of semiconductor chips, more imports of barrels of oil etc. Certainly the Chinese would benefit, so would large exporters like the other Asian countries, like Japan, Korea and the ASEAN region. 

 

2. Easy financial conditions would benefit people in other parts of the world as well. In Singapore, our interest rates are closely linked to the US interest rates. When interest rates plunged in March 2020, our rates also decreased significantly. That means, cheaper HDB loans, cheaper car loans, and generally, you would be able to secure loans at lower interest rates at a local bank. This is true for many countries that have similar monetary policy arrangements. Of course, rates have now started to creep back up but still below pre-COVID levels. However, easy financial conditions don't last forever, the effects of these liquidity injections may soon disappear, once the Federal Reserve deems that it is appropriate to normalise monetary policy.

 

However, many analysts and economists have begun to criticise the actions of the Federal Reserve in recent months and I believe that is the context behind your question. They ask: Is the current policy too accommodative? Too much money in the financial system causing people to spend a lot and thus, triggering inflation? So should they cut down on their "money printing"? Hmmm... Let us understand why they are asking these questions. In the most recent Consumer Price Index report, published on a monthly basis, the prices of goods and services have been shown to rise by 6.2% compared to the same time last year. Many Americans are paying a lot more for food, energy and rentals etc Naturally, they would be concerned and they would also be wondering if the Federal Reserve is doing too much to stimulate the economy. The answer to this question is fairly complex as well and many underlying factors need to be analysed.

 

So yes, maybe there are negative effects of inflation on the American economy highlighted in my previous paragraph. But any impacts felt by the rest of the world? The inflation that the rest of the world is experiencing does not just stem from easy financial conditions that the US Federal Reserve has created. It is also due to various other factors. Most notably, they include supply chain disruptions and people not being adapt quickly enough to the overwhelming demand in this post-covid recovery. I have spoken about the energy crisis in a separate post on this forum. That too is a separate causative factor as well. The inflationary dynamics are complex and one must read the news and hear what the analysts and experts are saying before one can truly understand what is happening. So... if you really are interested, I would strongly encourage that you do that. 

 

I hope what I have written does not confuse you but enlightens you, at least by a bit.

[Guest Guest]

On 11/16/2021 at 1:04 AM, purplegiraffe said:

The question you are asking is a fairly complex question in economics that I can possibly write a very long answer to but am very lazy to do so. 

 

Some context and clarification: When people say the US is "printing money", it is important to note that it is actually the Federal Reserve, which is their central bank that is doing so. It is an entity much like our MAS but with much greater significance in the global economic system. More importantly, " printing money" does not literally mean that the Central Bank prints hard cash and gives it to the government to spend. To keep it simple, the Federal Reserve "digitally creates money" by buying up government debt and mortgage-backed securities. Fundamentally, the purpose of this is not to allow the US to spend money like nobody's business but to increase the amount of liquidity in financial markets and thereby lowering long-term and shorter-term interest rates, such that companies are able to borrow money at lower interest rates to sustain operations or embark on new business plans, households are able to buy their desired goods and services, in the form of things like cars and houses. This would then stimulate demand in the economy and hopefully allow the Federal Reserve to achieve its goals of "maximum employment" and "price stability". 

 

This is fundamentally good for the global economy in my opinion. The US remains the world's largest economy by nominal GDP in USD (even though China has already taken over if you look at the purchasing power parity measure) and it has the world's largest and deepest financial markets (China's financial markets as well as that of Europe do not even come close to matching the breadth and depth of US financial markets). Financial conditions in the US affects almost every single country in the world that engages in international trade with the rest of the world. So powerful is the economic influence of the US on the rest of the world. I will now take you through two of the key positive effects in my view:

 

1. Stronger demand in the American economy would bolster strong demand for exports in the rest of the world, as the US imports a lot of its goods from other parts of the world. More houses and more cars being built would mean more imports of steel, more imports of cement, more imports of semiconductor chips, more imports of barrels of oil etc. Certainly the Chinese would benefit, so would large exporters like the other Asian countries, like Japan, Korea and the ASEAN region. 

 

2. Easy financial conditions would benefit people in other parts of the world as well. In Singapore, our interest rates are closely linked to the US interest rates. When interest rates plunged in March 2020, our rates also decreased significantly. That means, cheaper HDB loans, cheaper car loans, and generally, you would be able to secure loans at lower interest rates at a local bank. This is true for many countries that have similar monetary policy arrangements. Of course, rates have now started to creep back up but still below pre-COVID levels. However, easy financial conditions don't last forever, the effects of these liquidity injections may soon disappear, once the Federal Reserve deems that it is appropriate to normalise monetary policy.

 

However, many analysts and economists have begun to criticise the actions of the Federal Reserve in recent months and I believe that is the context behind your question. They ask: Is the current policy too accommodative? Too much money in the financial system causing people to spend a lot and thus, triggering inflation? So should they cut down on their "money printing"? Hmmm... Let us understand why they are asking these questions. In the most recent Consumer Price Index report, published on a monthly basis, the prices of goods and services have been shown to rise by 6.2% compared to the same time last year. Many Americans are paying a lot more for food, energy and rentals etc Naturally, they would be concerned and they would also be wondering if the Federal Reserve is doing too much to stimulate the economy. The answer to this question is fairly complex as well and many underlying factors need to be analysed.

 

So yes, maybe there are negative effects of inflation on the American economy highlighted in my previous paragraph. But any impacts felt by the rest of the world? The inflation that the rest of the world is experiencing does not just stem from easy financial conditions that the US Federal Reserve has created. It is also due to various other factors. Most notably, they include supply chain disruptions and people not being adapt quickly enough to the overwhelming demand in this post-covid recovery. I have spoken about the energy crisis in a separate post on this forum. That too is a separate causative factor as well. The inflationary dynamics are complex and one must read the news and hear what the analysts and experts are saying before one can truly understand what is happening. So... if you really are interested, I would strongly encourage that you do that. 

 

I hope what I have written does not confuse you but enlightens you, at least by a bit.

I just read the post and I find that it is extremely misleading, in particular this phrase "This is fundamentally good for the global economy in my opinion.". 

 

The important question to address is what did the word "This" refers to? Does the word "This" refers to "inflation" or does it refer to "printing money". 

 

To start off with a clarification, small inflation is fundamentally good for a country as it spurs the country to do better. Take for instance, if not for the increasing cost of living from your grandfather's time till now, you might still be living in attap houses that were built during your grandfather's time. But otherwise, in general, inflation is never good, because when people gets concerned about inflation, it usually means inflation has gotten out of hand, when the price of a simple meal has ballooned to be significantly higher. 

 

"Printing money" can indeed create inflation, but it is supposed to be a form of "controlled inflation". Such "printing of money" can happen when the economy stagnates, eg during the COVID-19 "recession", and the government starts to do everything they can to help stimulate the economy, such as "printing money" to get people to spend more. The details of how the mechanism works has been described in the post above (almost by someone academic), so I won't repeat. And because such "printing money" stimulation is an artificial boost to the economy, it needs to be carefully controlled and, like what I have mentioned above, if it gets over-boosted, inflation can over run the economy and a simple meal may cost a few times more than ever. Therefore, in my opinion, a carefully-controlled printing of money is always a good thing, but the key word is carefully-controlled. 

 

Now, going back to the American situation: The problem is the inflation in USA is NOT caused by the "printing of money" because the Feds (talking about the monetary authority here, and not the federal government) has not even stepped in much to stimulate the economy yet. 

 

There are multiple reasons that an economy can go into inflation, and the printing of money is just one of them. Other reasons include the usual demand-and-supply. Now, of course demand-and-supply are almost always two sides of the same coin and it should be balanced, but it can be still tilted towards a single side.

 

For example, if everyone wants the same of something and therefore prices went up, that can be a cause of demand-caused inflation. This is a good thing because inflation is created by what people wants, eg better housing, better food, etc. Using the exorbitantly expensive HDB estate Duxton as an illustration, if people are still willing to pay for such housing and thereby creating any "inflation" (if any) in housing prices, it is a good thing as long as the supply of HDB units elsewhere is still there to tamper with any excessive demand. Such an demand-caused inflation is a good thing because people will work harder for what they want. And like what the other poster said above, such demand-caused inflations may mean good things to the rest of the world, as suppliers from all over the world can start selling more things to the people who wants it. 

 

Compare this such demand-driven inflation to the time when the notorious (*pui*) Minister of National Development Mah Bow Tan decided to control the supply of HDB, escalating the cost of HDB all over Singapore enough to become a concern. And this brings me to the point that supply-caused inflation is a bad thing because people are working harder due to the increased prices for things, not of what they want, but what they NEED! Are married couples going to live with their parents for 5 years while the HDBs are built? 

 

(By the way, when i say good or bad, I refer to the common people in the street and not the suppliers to the goods. For example, (*pui*) Mah Bow Tan must be laughing his way to the banks by the time he left politics, because he has hit his KPIs in terms of revenue earned from HDB, and gotten all his big fat bonuses already).

 

The  inflation problem in USA now is not demand-caused. One of the key causes of the USA inflation is due to the supply problems. For instance, there is not enough coal to get shipped into the country, so utility prices went up since the utility companies will need to pay more for whatever coal that gets into the country.

 

Now, to make matters worse, even though the Feds (monetary authority) has not been doing much on controlling such inflation, which I guess is because the supply chain will revert back to normal sooner or later, someone from the federal government actually approved an almost $2 trillion dollar "stimulus bill" to throw into the economy. Common sense would tell you if a $2 trillion stimulus package is going to cause a ripple in the economy, or a tsunami. When you get too much money in your hands as a commoner, you might be willing to pay more to buy things that were much cheaper last time, causing an price escalation everywhere.

 

So now, with a combined supply-caused inflation already in the picture, and another couple of trillion-dollar stimulus money getting pumped into the economy, the entire world is getting worried that the American economy may go into something close to hyperinflation sooner or later.  So you tell me if it is a good thing or a bad thing. 

 

I have also answered you when is inflation a good thing in my entire passage. 

 

[purplegiraffe]

On 11/17/2021 at 4:54 PM, Guest Guest said:

The important question to address is what did the word "This" refers to? Does the word "This" refers to "inflation" or does it refer to "printing money". 

 

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough, but "this" refers to "printing money". I stand by my view, that it has been, on balance, VERY GOOD for the global economy. Without such emergency measures by the Federal Reserve to enhance liquidity in financial markets, we may not have been able to recover from the devastating shock to the economy from Covid.

[purplegiraffe]

On 11/17/2021 at 4:54 PM, Guest Guest said:

"Printing money" can indeed create inflation, but it is supposed to be a form of "controlled inflation". Such "printing of money" can happen when the economy stagnates, eg during the COVID-19 "recession", and the government starts to do everything they can to help stimulate the economy, such as "printing money" to get people to spend more. The details of how the mechanism works has been described in the post above (almost by someone academic), so I won't repeat. And because such "printing money" stimulation is an artificial boost to the economy, it needs to be carefully controlled and, like what I have mentioned above, if it gets over-boosted, inflation can over run the economy and a simple meal may cost a few times more than ever. Therefore, in my opinion, a carefully-controlled printing of money is always a good thing, but the key word is carefully-controlled. 

 

Yes, thanks for your elaboration. Carefully-controlled monetary easing can certainly be very beneficial for the economy, while monetary easing that is not carefully controlled can potentially lead to very significant problems. Easy monetary policy in the early 2000s, under then-Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, has been widely credited as the reason why there was a housing bubble in the US, which ultimately collapsed in the later part of the decade. Appropriately used monetary policy during the 1980s, under then-Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, helped the US economy to bring down inflation and thus, helped to promote economic growth in that decade. 

[Guest Tomato]

On 11/17/2021 at 5:26 PM, purplegiraffe said:

 

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough, but "this" refers to "printing money". I stand by my view, that it has been, on balance, VERY GOOD for the global economy. Without such emergency measures by the Federal Reserve to enhance liquidity in financial markets, we may not have been able to recover from the devastating shock to the economy from Covid.

 

What a load of tosh!

 

Abusing its its given position (USD as a global currency) by printing money, which now creates inflation to itself (exacerbated by the US-China tensions), and eventually exporting inflation to the world, especially 3rd world countries.  How is this good?

 

I stopped reading your main text once you mentioned that this is good for the global economy.

 

To end it off, USA's policies are meant to benefit herself and herself only with little regard to the world (not even her western allies, more so her poor Latin US neighbouring countries).  I do not see how any of USA's current moves will benefit other nations. 

 

[Guest Guest Banana]

On 11/17/2021 at 5:50 PM, Guest Tomato said:

 

What a load of tosh!

 

Abusing its its given position (USD as a global currency) by printing money, which now creates inflation to itself (exacerbated by the US-China tensions), and eventually exporting inflation to the world, especially 3rd world countries.  How is this good?

 

I stopped reading your main text once you mentioned that this is good for the global economy.

 

To end it off, USA's policies are meant to benefit herself and herself only with little regard to the world (not even her western allies, more so her poor Latin US neighbouring countries).  I do not see how any of USA's current moves will benefit other nations. 

 

 

Your reply shows a lack of understanding of how monetary policy works and also how the global financial system works. Yes, you are very right to say that the direct beneficiaries of the "money printing" is the American government and the American people. But to say that those actions are selfish as only Americans benefit is ignorant as you faill to appreciate the interconnected nature of economies in today's world. 

[Guest Tomato]

On 11/17/2021 at 6:07 PM, Guest Guest Banana said:

 

Your reply shows a lack of understanding of how monetary policy works and also how the global financial system works. Yes, you are very right to say that the direct beneficiaries of the "money printing" is the American government and the American people. But to say that those actions are selfish as only Americans benefit is ignorant as you faill to appreciate the interconnected nature of economies in today's world. 

 

USD is as such due to its monetary hegemony, and its role as the reserve currency for the global economy WWII.

Since you claim that you are proficient in how these works, you should very well know how USA derived such a position and WHY she is doing (all that she is doing now in the global arena) to defend this position. 

 

Instead of calling others ignorant, why don't you explain in simple sentences why USA is such a God sent nation with its currency?

 

[purplegiraffe]

On 11/17/2021 at 11:20 PM, Guest Tomato said:

 

USD is as such due to its monetary hegemony, and its role as the reserve currency for the global economy WWII.

Since you claim that you are proficient in how these works, you should very well know how USA derived such a position and WHY she is doing (all that she is doing now in the global arena) to defend this position. 

 

Instead of calling others ignorant, why don't you explain in simple sentences why USA is such a God sent nation with its currency?

 

 

Sure, no problem. I am more than happy to share my learning with other people. The question you have posed has been one which I have conducted extensive research on a few months back. The answer to the question can vary depending on the level of detail you wish to know. The economic historian Barry Eichengreen provides a detailed answer to answer exactly this question in his book Exorbitant Privilege: The Rise and Fall of the Dollar and the Future of the International Monetary System. If you are as interested as I was in pursuing the answer to this question, then I would suggest that you get a copy of the book to read. 

 

As you have requested, in "simple sentences", I will explain what are the characteristics of the US dollar and the current international monetary system that allow the Dollar to hold such superiority:

 

1. Throughout the 20th Century, the American economy experienced a period of extraordinary economic growth, growing much faster than its European counterparts. With this growth also came the growth of bilateral trade between other countries and America. The global centre of trade finance in the late 19th century and early 20th Century used to be London. With the rise of American businesses and the associated growth in trade volumes in the US, the global centre of trade finance shifted to New York. Naturally, with trade settlements being conducted in America, the parties involved would increasingly rely on the US dollar for their international transactions. There are "network effects" associated with currency, just like with social media platforms. The social media platform becomes more and more "valuable" as more users join and as the size of the network increases, more users would want to join to participate in the network as they see value in doing so. This is the same for currency. The US dollar experienced such "network effects" and hence, experienced robust growth in usage around the world during the 20th Century. 

 

2. In the previous paragraph, I explained the rise of the US dollar. In this paragraph, I will explain why the US dollar remains the "global reserve currency", accounting for over 60% of official foreign reserves around the world. The reason, as Eichengreen explains, is that there simply is no viable replacement. Eichengreen discusses the Yuan and the Euro as possible alternatives and then, explains why they are unlikely to succeed. The Yuan is a "currency with too much state" while the Euro is a "currency with too little state". Financial markets in China, as well as the market for the Yuan, is simply under too much state regulation. The government, which includes all its political officeholders, are able to influence monetary policy and hence, affect the market value of the Yuan. That would not be desirable for countries who wish to hold it as its reserve currency. On the other hand, the Euro is exposed to the financial and economic health of all the countries in the Eurozone, the stronger ones in north as well as their weaker southern neighbours. The European Central Bank has many stakeholders that it needs to take into account before it can make a monetary policy decision. This hinders the effective use of monetary policy by the central bank. The US dollar is not without flaws, as exposed by the vulnerabilities in the US financial system in 2007-2008. However, it has sufficient regulation by the Federal Reserve, which is a monetary authority that is independent of the US government. At the same time, having only one stakeholder (i.e. the American people), the Federal Reserve is able to act more swiftly in times of crisis, compared to the ECB. 

 

 

[Guest Guest]

On 11/17/2021 at 5:26 PM, purplegiraffe said:

 

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough, but "this" refers to "printing money". I stand by my view, that it has been, on balance, VERY GOOD for the global economy. Without such emergency measures by the Federal Reserve to enhance liquidity in financial markets, we may not have been able to recover from the devastating shock to the economy from Covid.

 

I view such a statement as an incorrect one. "Printing money" is only good because it is meant to stimulate economic growth. But the only reason why it is "good" is because it is a potential "cure" to an underlying problem, which is economic stagnation. 

 

To use an analogy to illustrate, think of "printing money" as a form of vaccination. You go for your vaccination because you need your body to become stronger against the virus. So the vaccine is only "good" in this perspective because there is an underlying problem to resolve, and that problem is the virus floating all around us. But if it is not for the underlying problem of the virus flowing all around us, why would you even deem the vaccine to be a "good" thing? 

 

Similarly, you "print money" only because you need your economy to stop stagnating and you want to stimulate the economic growth. So "printing money" is only good in this perspective because there is an underlying problem to resolve, and that problem is the economic stagnation floating all around. If not for the underlying problem of the economic stagnation, why would you even deem that "printing money" is a "good" thing? 

 

Using the same vaccination analogy, you vaccinate yourself with a controlled amount of deactivated virus to make yourself stronger. But if you do too much of it and inject yourself with too much deactivated virus or the real virus, you may overreact and die from it; similarly, if you can do a little "printing money" to stimulate the economy to grow a bit stronger. But if you print too much money (or in this case Biden throwing out trillions of dollars into the economy), it will only cause the economy to overheat and go into hyperinflation and everyone is going to suffer from it sooner or later. 

 

 

 

On 11/17/2021 at 6:07 PM, Guest Guest Banana said:

 

Your reply shows a lack of understanding of how monetary policy works and also how the global financial system works. Yes, you are very right to say that the direct beneficiaries of the "money printing" is the American government and the American people. But to say that those actions are selfish as only Americans benefit is ignorant as you faill to appreciate the interconnected nature of economies in today's world. 

 

I am not going to thank the Americans for any side benefits that the world is going to get, when the actions that they do were meant for the benefit for themselves in the first place. For example, if your neighbor water his plants and some water wetted your flowers, are you going to thank and pay him for helping you water your flowers as well? Maybe you will be crazy enough to do so, but definitely not me. 

[Guest curiousTony]

if a company print money note for his own expenditure, would it allow? lol    and who get his money note would be dead if they reduce the exchange rate purposely and buy back at the lower rate.

[purplegiraffe]

On 11/18/2021 at 12:28 AM, Guest Guest said:

"Printing money" is only good because it is meant to stimulate economic growth. But the only reason why it is "good" is because it is a potential "cure" to an underlying problem, which is economic stagnation. 

 

Ok I do agree with you, expansionary monetary policy is good as a tool for stimulating the economy and a tool for combating recessions. Your analogy with vaccine does make some sense.

 

On 11/18/2021 at 12:28 AM, Guest Guest said:

For example, if your neighbor water his plants and some water wetted your flowers, are you going to thank and pay him for helping you water your flowers as well?

 

Here, you use a simple analogy for a not-so-simple situation. You and your neighbour may live your lives quite independently of each other. However, Singapore and the US are such closely linked in trade and investment. Singapore greatly appreciates the economic boost that the Federal Reserve's expansionary monetary policy provides. Would our economic recovery have taken place as quickly without them easing monetary conditions? Probably not. 

 

Anyway, as Singaporeans, I don't think that inflation is a very big concern for us. Domestic inflation rates are around 2% now? And maybe are inching slightly higher in the next few months? We are nowhere near the precarious situation that the American public is facing, with energy, food and rental prices spiking through the roof. 

[Guest Guest]

On 11/18/2021 at 12:50 AM, purplegiraffe said:

Here, you use a simple analogy for a not-so-simple situation. You and your neighbour may live your lives quite independently of each other. However, Singapore and the US are such closely linked in trade and investment. Singapore greatly appreciates the economic boost that the Federal Reserve's expansionary monetary policy provides. Would our economic recovery have taken place as quickly without them easing monetary conditions? Probably not. 

 

You may want to think so highly of and "appreciate" your neighbor, but does your neighbor think so highly of and "appreciate" you? Singapore is notorious for having so many one-sided unrequited love affairs with everyone - the love for USA, the love for China, the love for India. Guess what? Nobody loves Singapore for anything else except for all the money that the country binge on foreigners but stinge on the locals. Isn't it time for Singapore to wake up already? 

 

 

On 11/18/2021 at 12:50 AM, purplegiraffe said:

Anyway, as Singaporeans, I don't think that inflation is a very big concern for us. Domestic inflation rates are around 2% now? And maybe are inching slightly higher in the next few months? We are nowhere near the precarious situation that the American public is facing, with energy, food and rental prices spiking through the roof. 

 

I am not sure if you are just inexperienced and young, or old and short-sighted. It was just less than 10 years ago that inflation in Singapore hit close to 6%, and less than 8 years ago that inflation hit close to 8%. That type of inflation is horrendous and it held over several years! How can anyone say "I don't think that inflation is a very big concern for us"? Are you blind? And guess how the Singapore government decided to "control" the inflation during that time? Instead of actively trying to control the escalating prices, they did it by changing the basket of goods measuring inflation.  

 

https://tradingeconomics.com/singapore/inflation-cpi

[purplegiraffe]

On 11/18/2021 at 7:59 AM, Guest Guest said:

I am not sure if you are just inexperienced and young, or old and short-sighted. It was just less than 10 years ago that inflation in Singapore hit close to 6%, and less than 8 years ago that inflation hit close to 8%.

 

Thank you for alerting me to these inflationary episodes. I will take a look.

[Guest Guest]

On 11/18/2021 at 7:59 AM, Guest Guest said:

 

 

I am not sure if you are just inexperienced and young, or old and short-sighted. It was just less than 10 years ago that inflation in Singapore hit close to 6%, and less than (another) 8 years ago that inflation hit close to 8%. That type of inflation is horrendous and it held over several years! How can anyone say "I don't think that inflation is a very big concern for us"? Are you blind? And guess how the Singapore government decided to "control" the inflation during that time? Instead of actively trying to control the escalating prices, they did it by changing the basket of goods measuring inflation.  

 

https://tradingeconomics.com/singapore/inflation-cpi

 

Correction:

the phrase above should have read "It was just less than 10 years ago that inflation in Singapore hit close to 6%, and less than another 8 years ago that inflation hit close to 8%."

[Guest inflation]

You know inflation has hit really hard when you started getting requests for paid sex from local teens (students and nsf) this month on Grindr