Why the last mile on the road to low inflation may yet prove to be the toughest

The longer prices of goods and services stay high, the more we all become inured to them, slowing inflation’s decline. Photograph: Alastair Grant/AP

The world’s rich economies have only completed the easy part of restraining inflation and it will be the “last mile” that could be the hardest to travel, the Bank for International Settlements said in its annual economic statement.

Known colloquially as the central banks’ central bank, the BIS detailed why inflation may be stickier than expected – particularly if authorities don’t stay the course.