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Inflation has loomed over the U.S. economy like a movie villain, haunting grocery store trips and gas runs. While costs remain much higher than they were a few years ago, those rapid price increases have mostly vanished.Inflation stands at its lowest level in more than three years, hovering right near the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data this week showed.Not long ago, a once-in-a-century pandemic upended the economy, sending millions nationwide into lockdown and snarling the global supply chain. Meanwhile, trillions of dollars in government support helped Americans spend amid the calamity.A resulting imbalance between supply and demand sent prices soaring. The Russia-Ukraine war exacerbated the problem, causing gas and food shortages. Within a few years, the massive issue has largely been resolved.“This was the highest inflation over the longest period that we’ve seen in decades. It was serious,” Claudia Sahm, chief economist at New Century Advisors and a former Fed official, told ABC News.Here’s what to know about how inflation has come back down:Repaired supply chainDuring the pandemic, factories worldwide shut down. Workers stayed home for fear of getting sick. Freight ships waited off the coast of overwhelmed U.S. ports.The pandemic clogged the global supply chain, imposing shortages for everything from cars to lumber to exercise equipment. Meanwhile, people stuck at home focused their spending on those exact sorts of products, since COVID-19 shutdowns preven …
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