Europe Is Relatively "Miserable" As Inflation Soars (1/3)

We last updated our global "misery" indices (Y/Y inflation plus the unemployment rate) in June, with soaring inflation contributing the most to multi-decade rises.

• There has been no let-up since then for most countries. Data through October shows levels unseen since the 1970s/early 1980s, with some at all-time records. Inflation continues to drive misery indices higher, with unemployment rates steady/falling in most countries.
• That hasn't always been the case: most of the previous spikes were due to a combination of soaring inflation and high unemployment (late 70s/early 80s).
• A few more recent spikes were due largely to higher unemployment rates, with inflation remaining subdued (Eurozone crisis in the mid-2010s).
• Of the major economies, Italy currently stands out on the high side (+20%, with unemp of 8.1% and falling, and inflation of 11.9% and rising).
• Indeed, southern Europe is pulling the eurozone misery index higher, with the German and French indices at the highest levels in decades but still lower than the aggregate for the euro bloc.

MNI calculations based on national statistics