FRANKFURT (MNI) – Global inflation rates have rebounded from lows
but remain at “subdued” levels, European Central Bank Executive Board
member Juergen Stark said on Wednesday.
“However, these measures of inflation are not fully comparable,”
Stark said at a conference here, noting that the European Union uses
calculations based on a harmonized methodology and a single set of
definitions, while the U.S. and Japan each refer to nationally computed
figures.
The same holds true for other statistics, including debt and
leverage levels, household wealth and labour productivity, Stark
continued.
“Globalisation continues to impact decisively on statistics and
there is no doubt of the merits of comparable statistics,” Stark said.
“We need globally comparable statistics. And, there must be investment
in closing gaps and enhancing comparability of statistics at the global
level.”
— Frankfurt bureau: +49-69-720 142; email: frankfurt@marketnews.com —
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