Types of Inflation and their Effects

If you didn’t know, inflation is a general ascent in the prices of goods and services in the nation. To make it simple, it is a continuous increase in prices in the country rather than a one-time increase. Deflation is falling costs in the nation rather than a slower increase in prices (which is falling inflation). Do you know what are the types of inflation?

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Now, why is inflation important?

Inflation or constantly rising costs is a significant factor for everyone. At the point when costs increase because of inflation, the value of your money falls. When there is a continuous increase in price levels, people need more and more money to buy goods and services.

To empower the individuals to meet their everyday needs and for the consumption of products and services when their costs are rising, their wages must increase for them to keep up their standard of life. For government workers, their dearness allowance is hiked. Wages and compensations for those in the private sector are raised, however after some time-slack.

Be that as it may, individuals with fixed salaries and the individuals who are independently employed can’t raise their costs and are affected by inflation. The poor, experience the ill effects of the continuous ascent in costs, particularly that of food grains and other things.

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How is Inflation measured?

In India, inflation is primarily measured by using indices. These are the WPI and the CPI. These indices measure the wholesale and retail-level price changes in India, respectively. The CPI calculates the changes in the price of supplies and services such as food, electronics, medical care, education, etc, which Indian consumers buy for their use.

On the other hand, the supplies or services that are sold by Indian businesses to smaller businesses for resale are captured by the WPI. In India, both WPI and CPI are used to measure inflation. The purpose of the WPI is to monitor price movements that reflect the supply and demand in industry, manufacturing, and construction. This helps in analyzing both macroeconomic and microeconomic conditions in India.

What are the primary drivers of Inflation?

The primary drivers of inflation in India are many. Here are some of the chief reasons for the increase in prices in the nation.

● Higher demand and lower production or supply of multiple merchandises lead to a demand-supply gap, which leads to an increase in prices

● Excess circulation of money can lead to inflation too as money loses its value and people’s purchasing power comes down

● With individuals having more cash, they additionally will in general spend more, which causes more demand. Additionally, note the accompanying pointers:

● An increase in production prices of certain commodities also causes inflation as the price of the final product will be hiked. This is called cost-push inflation. This is explained later in the article.

● Increase in the costs of products and services is a factor to consider as the labor costshave to be increased to keep up the typical cost for basic items. This spirals to an additional increment in the costs of products.

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Types of Inflation

There are different types of inflation in India. Here they are.

Demand-pull Inflation

Demand-pull inflation happens when the overall demand for products or services increases faster than the production capacity of the economy. This leads to a demand-supply gap or in simple terms, a shortage of goods and services. This leads to an increase in prices in the nation. Demand-pull inflation is caused by a shift in demand.

A good example of demand-pull inflation is the oil business. Over the last few decades, the demand for oil all over the world has increased significantly. However, oil is a rare asset, so there is just a constrained sum accessible on our planet. So, demand for oil has increased more quickly than supply. As a result of this, a barrel of oil used to cost almost three times as much as it did 20 years ago. Since oil is such a valuable asset, this cost increment affects all goods and services of the economy. It causes demand shifts and changes in the costs of related merchandise. Note that now, oil prices have plummeted because of the fall in demand for oil because of the coronavirus.

Also read: Inflation and the Inflation Adjusted Return

Cost-push Inflation

Cost-push inflation happens when there is an increase in the cost of production of goods and services. That is when the prices of inputs such as raw materials, labor, etc increases, the production of these become more expensive. So, the producers increase the prices of the goods and services so that their business remains profitable.

One of the most well-known instances of cost-push inflation can be found in the oil business. Especially, in the 1973 oil emergency, which is otherwise called the primary oil crisis. This emergency was activated when the individuals from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) declared an oil ban, which brought about an unexpected stock reduction, that is, an abrupt reduction in the oil supply. Accordingly, the cost of oil universally increased from USD 3.00 to USD 12.00 per barrel, without any increase in the demand for oil.

Open Inflation

This is the simplest of the types of inflation where the increase in the price levels of goods and services is continuous and is visible to people in the nation. You can easily see the yearly rate of increase in the price levels.

Creeping Inflation

This is otherwise called gentle inflation or moderate inflation. This kind of inflation happens when the price levels perseveringly increase over some time at a slow rate. At the point when the pace of inflation is under 5 percent every year, or it is a single-digit expansion rate, it is viewed as moderate inflation.

Hyper inflation

When inflation increases at a very high rate, it is hyperinflation. Hyperinflation happens when the prices spiral out of control and the monetary authorities are unable to impose any check on it. This is when market economies witness prices rising a million or even a trillion percent every year. Germany had hyperinflation in the 1920s.

Stagflation

It is an economic situation in which inflation and economic stagnation or recession occur simultaneously and remain unchecked for a while. Stagflation was witnessed by developed countries in the 1970s, when world oil prices rose dramatically.

Deflation  

Deflation is the reverse of inflation. It is a continuous decrease in the price level of merchandise and services. It happens when the yearly inflation rate falls below zero percent (a negative inflation rate), bringing about a hike in the real value of cash. Japan experienced deflation for nearly 10 years in the 1990s.

Food Inflation

The price of food has continually been on the ascent, squeezing the pockets of normal purchasers. Everything from food grain to dairy items and from leafy foods has seen a cost increment throughout the years. Budgetary specialists feel that controlling food inflation in India is an intense undertaking, as the nation is dependent on the downpours for horticultural development. Also, the arrangement of bringing import duties up amid surplus and executing export bans during deficiencies has not helped as it has brought about a closed food economy. Food inflation has a severe impact on the monthly costs of a typical householder in India. This lessens the extra cash and may influence regularly scheduled installments and liabilities if satisfactory cushion has not been considered while taking on those liabilities.

Medical Inflation

The government has set out on a genuine drive to check the soaring health expenses in India. Limitations on the prices of medicines and mechanical advancement are a part of this. For a normal family, clinical and hospitalization charges keep on increasing, putting stress on home spending plans and affecting reserve funds each time there is a health-related crisis or hospitalization. These costs are just expected to increase as people get older in India, and medical coverages, which are an absolute necessity today, are not getting any less expensive. Only radical changes in the medicinal services industry, helped by focused wellbeing changes and appropriate mediations by the government, can aid the common man.

Also read: 7 Investing Lessons From Mahabharata

Housing Inflation

Lodging is one of the three necessities of life. Everything from construction materials to production costs has increased significantly, leaving manufacturers to increase the prices of real estate projects in India. Land costs have flattened in the previous two years as a result of a lack of demand and unsold stock. Data shows that the Residential Property Price Index, which estimates lodging inflation, has been declining since the beginning of 2014. Subsequently, pressed for margins, manufacturers have endeavored to cling to present property costs and haggling the price downwards only when they are plentifully certain about the purchaser’s intent of buying the property. Thus, property purchasers have had to put up with higher costs. This is a circuitous impact on housing inflation. Even those who were looking to build their own home on a self-owned plot are now being forced to shell out more money. However, unlike food inflation, the Residential Property Price Index has increased over several years. This gives decent returns to property buyers in the long haul.

Retail Inflation

This kind of inflation affects all goods and services available in the retail market. From an increase in service charges to higher prices of lifestyle goods and services, inflation affects every individual as his or her basket of products and services to be purchased daily increases. Retail inflation is measured by CPI which is calculated by taking a weighted average on a specific basket of goods and services in the country. It reduces your purchasing power by cutting into your disposable income. If its effect on your monthly budget is not monitored regularly, it can reduce your savings.

Negative effects of inflation

Negative effects of inflation include an increase in the opportunity cost of holding money. The uncertainty over future inflation might discourage investment and savings by individuals. If inflation is rapid enough, shortage of goods might happen as consumers begin hoarding goods out of concern that prices will increase in the future. This is what is happening now because of coronavirus. Inflation typically decreases the disposable income of people and they tend to spend less on consumer goods and services. It is important to consider inflation when you are palling for your financial goals as it tends to lower the value of your savings over time.

Disclaimer:

This article should not be construed as investment advice, please consult your Investment Adviser before making any sound investment decision.

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About the author

KishorKumar Balpalli, believes that financial literacy and discipline is the key to one’s financial freedom. KishorKumar is a Certified Financial Planner, Personal Finance Blogger & the Founder of myMoneySage.in an award-winning Wealth Management platform. myMoneySage simplifies investing for individuals and amplifies business growth for Registered Investment Advisers by leveraging Artificial intelligence and machine learning. The AI of the machine plus the intellect of the human advisor enables comprehensive & client-centric advice at a fraction of the cost of a conventional adviser.

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