In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as they usually switch to more stable foreign currencies. When measured in stable foreign currencies, prices typically remain stable. Effective capital controls and currency substitution (“dollarization”) are the orthodox solutions to ending short-term hyperinflation; however there are significant social and economic costs to these policies. Ineffective implementations of these solutions often exacerbate the situation. Many governments choose to attempt to solve structural issues without resorting to those solutions, with the goal of bringing inflation down slowly while minimizing social costs of further economic shocks.
100 quintillion (1020) pengő, the largest denomination bill ever issued, Hungary, 1946. 1 sextillion pengő notes were printed, but never issued.
The price of gold in Germany, 1 January 1918 – 30 November 1923. (The vertical scale is logarithmic.)
Germany, 1923: banknotes had lost so much value that they were used as wallpaper.
5 million marks would have been worth $714.29 in January 1923, but was only worth about one-thousandth of one cent by October 1923.
In economics, inflation is a general increase in the prices of goods and services in an economy. This is usually measured using the consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduction in the purchasing power of money. The opposite of CPI inflation is deflation, a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. The common measure of inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index. As prices faced by households do not all increase at the same rate, the consumer price index (CPI) is often used for this purpose.
The silver content of Roman silver coins rapidly declined during the Crisis of the Third Century.
Restaurant increasing prices by $1.00 due to inflation
Low-cost price adjustment