Why Do Inflation Rates Sometimes Go Wild?

Imagine you and your friends are running a lemonade stand. If everyone starts making more lemonade at the same time, there will be too much for people to buy, so the price of your lemonade might drop. But if suddenly there’s not enough sugar or lemons everywhere, the price of lemonade goes up, that's like inflation in real life. Inflation rates go wild when prices change a lot and quickly because of things like how much money is being used around the world.

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Examples

  1. A lemonade stand suddenly costs $10 because there's not enough sugar anywhere.
  2. Your parents' car used to cost $20,000, but now it costs $40,000, and that's just this year!
  3. You save up for a toy, and by the time you get to the store, it’s already twice as expensive.

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