Wages and nominal interest rates are no longer indexed to prices: What consequences?
In the contemporary period: The indexation of nominal wages to prices has become low, which is linked to wage earners’ loss of bargaining power; It is believed that the reaction of nominal interest rates to a rise in inflation would be weak for a long time to come, as central banks do not want to take the risk of a debt crisis. This means that the consequences of an exogenous inflationary shock (e.g. due to a rise in commodity prices) would be very different from what they were in the past. Such a shock today would: Not trigger high inflation from the price- wage loop; Be very negative for employees and lenders, while companies and asset holders would be protected, which is the opposite of the situation in the past.