For this week's Sunday Editorial... Inflation Ghost’s Revenge.

Think of the world's money workings as a shaky boat, with its team of big bank folks trying their best to fix holes while the spirit of rising costs cries in the sails.

We're in August 2025, and that spirit, gone after 2023, is back, moving through markets from Tokyo to São Paulo with force. This isn’t the wild price rise of old bad tales, but a tough, spiky thing that makes people hold their money tight, firms cut costs, and big decision, makers hope hard.

The big ask isn’t if we can stop it, it’s if we can do so without the boat going down into a slow, sticky mess.

Let’s roll out the map. Bloomberg says price rise is at 4.4% yearly in Q2 2025, way over the 2, 3% goal that big banks like the Federal Reserve, ECB, and Bank of Japan try to keep.

The bad guys here are many messes. Chains of supply, still hurt from post, COVID fuss, are stuck on chip lacks, TSMC's 15% drop in making stuff, thanks to slow gear, messes up everything from cars to AI tech.

Energy stuff is set to blow: Brent oil’s at $93 per barrel, per Yahoo Finance, from OPEC+ cuts and Iran, Saudi fights, while Europe’s gas prices are up 30% from last year, per Euronews, as Russian pipes dry up.

Copper, key for the green push, hit $12, 700 per ton, pushed by need for EVs and wind things. Pay isn’t helping, U.S. work costs up 4.8% in 2025, per CNBC, as workers want more money to keep up with food costs.

This is cost driven rise with a demand pull, and it’s very strong.

The hurt’s not the same everywhere, like a storm hitting different coasts. New money spots, India, Brazil, Nigeria, are dealing with 6, 9% rises, pushed by food and fuel jumps. India’s bad rains pushed wheat up 12%, per Bloomberg, while Brazil’s diesel costs are hard on farmers.

Rich places do a bit better but still feel it: the U.S. sees 4.2%, the Eurozone 4%. The IMF’s July 2025 talk warns of “split recoveries, ” saying poor places face high import costs, weak money, and no cash help. China’s property fall cuts its need for goods, hurting sellers like Australia and Chile, while Europe’s energy mess makes costs for steel, chemicals, and cars go up. It’s a broken world where no big bank can fix alone.

For money folks, it’s like playing cards with half a deck.

Shares are shaky, the S&P 500’s down 10% from its 2025 high, and tech, heavy NASDAQ’s lost 12% as fear of rate hikes bite. Bonds are a trap; U.S. 10, year ones give 3.7%, but with rising costs, you lose money. Gold's up 17% this year, and Bitcoin is seen as a safe spot, but both can't fully save you. The VIX, Wall Street’s worry measure, hit 24 this week, per Yahoo Finance, showing a nervous market.

Spot divides make things cloudy: European factory shares drop under high energy costs, while U.S. energy and goods shares stay strong. Funds looking at new money spots, especially China, lost $18 billion in July, per CNBC. So, what's smart? Spreading your bets is your main hold.

Energy shares, think ExxonMobil or Vestas in green stuff, do well with high prices and green rules. Daily needs like Procter & Gamble help as homes stick to the basics. Cash is good; 10, 15% ready money lets you jump on low price spots like European tech.

Crypto, like Bitcoin, should be 5, 10%, don’t risk it all. Data shows this: global share funds lost $15 billion this week, while energy stuff and gold got $3 billion. Change is always close, stay quick.

The waves hit more than just money bags. Firms, especially those needing lots of energy like making stuff, face tough cost cuts. Germany’s core firms see a 13% jump in troubles, per Bloomberg, as energy bills hit them hard. Shops raise prices, but people buying stuff isn’t strong, U.S. shop sales growth slowed to 2.8% in Q2. Big financial choices are tight: more money out feeds cost rises, but cutting back risks no growth.

New money spots with little cash help fight unrest, Brazil’s fuel fights and India’s farmer strikes wave red flags. The World Bank’s 2025 view marks 28% of poor places as “high risk” for owing too much, a slow crash.

Ahead lies a tough test: can big banks beat the price rise ghost without killing growth?

The Fed plans a small rate rise by Q4, but the ECB waits, stuck by Europe’s energy problems. Past problems, 1970s slow, sticky mess, 2010s no growth, show they often mess up. World fights, from U.S., China trade wars to Russia’s energy moves, stop working together. Money folks, get ready: guard with gold and crypto, spread your bets, and trust long, term goods like green tech and block tech.

The ghost cries, but the quick can weave through the storm.

Stay sharp, the waters only get wilder.

#TrustTheGoat