On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by NICE Actimize Xceed — Wells Fargo Chief Corporate Economist Richard DeKaser digs into the inflation forecast. With the Consumer Price Index rising 5.4% year-on-year in September, questions continue to simmer about how persistent and long-lasting inflation will be.

DeKaser explains his view the increase in prices as a function of product and labor shortages — from supply chain kinks to child care gaps — driven by the ongoing fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic that should wane, but he acknowledges that the inflation forecast is one of the most hotly debated topics on the ABA Economic Advisory Committee — which he chairs — and outlines the arguments made by those more concerned about long-lasting inflation.

DeKaser also discusses the economic growth trajectory, credit quality conditions and how global conditions may affect the U.S. economic outlook.