Inflation Persistence in Europe: The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic and of the Russia-Ukraine War

Abstract

This note analyses the possible effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and of the Russia-Ukraine war on the degree of inflation persistence in both the euro zone and the European Union as a whole (EU27). For this purpose a fractional integration model is estimated, first using the full sample and then recursively. Although the recursive analysis provides clear evidence of a significant increase in inflation persistence (especially in the case of the EU27, for which in addition to jumps an upward trend is clearly identifiable), the full-sample results imply long-lasting but only temporary effects of the two shocks being examined. These findings suggest that the required policy response to both shocks should also have a temporary nature.