Why economists are reassessing inflation – and what that means for politics

Frankfurt Despite sharply rising energy prices, disrupted supply chains and capacity bottlenecks, the past few years have not been years of crisis for many companies. Not only large energy companies recently reported record profits, but also companies such as BMW, Bosch, Hapag Lloyd, Porsche, Viessmann and many more. Mercedes-Benz, for example, was able to increase its profit to a good 20 billion euros in 2022, thanks to a “focus on the top models and disciplined margin and cost management,” as the company announced.

The crisis is taking place elsewhere: with the “Otto average earner”. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the inflation rate averaged 6.4 percent in 2022. It is currently 8.7 percent, and for food it is even 21.8 percent. The wage increases are far from keeping up.