The pandemic-driven retreat from globalization, together with population aging in China and the advanced economies, is a recipe for inflation, say some economists, but Dalia Marin argues that while workers' bargaining power may rise, a wage-price spiral in the advanced economies is unlikely.

Since the mid-2000s, productivity growth in advanced economies has been anemic. This sluggish growth seems paradoxical given recent rapid advances in digital innovation and AI. The COVID-19 pandemic might help resolve the paradox by accelerating firms’ adoption of robots and other labor-saving innovations, thereby boosting productivity growth.