Inflation in the world’s rich economies has reached its highest level in 25 years, fueling concerns about rising living costs for households and increasing pressure on central banks to raise interest rates.

Data released on Tuesday showed consumer prices in the OECD group of developed countries rose to an annual rate of 5.8% in November, up from 1.2% in the same month last year and the highest level since May 1996.

The increase was driven by energy prices, which soared 28%, up more than three percentage points from the previous month to their highest level since June 1980. Food price inflation also rebounded strongly to 5.5% from 4.6%. last month.

The data came as the incoming Bundesbank president warned that inflation could last longer than economists had expected.

Joachim Nagel, who succeededThis week, ed Jens Weidmann, president of the Bundesbank and member of the ECB’s governing council, said: “There is far less money in citizens’ wallets . . . a lot of people are worried about this loss of purchasing power.”

That raises several questions, he said, including: “Is very loose monetary policy still appropriate? If so, how long?”

In the US, the euro zone and the UK, inflation is more than double the 2% target set by their central banks.

Eurozone inflation up to 5% In the last month of last year, flash data released last week showed. U.S. data for December, due on Wednesday, is expected to rise to 7 percent, according to economists polled by Reuters. In the UK, consumer prices rose 5.1% in November.

The world’s major central banks have signaled they may start tightening monetary policy in the coming months.

Bank of England policy rate hike December and the Fed for the first time in three years warned It may have to raise rates sooner than previously planned.European Central Bank Announce In December, it will halt its pandemic-era bond purchases in March.

Several European governments have stepped in to mitigate the impact of sharply rising energy costs.France, Spain and Italy all promised aid to soften the blow to poor families. Last week, the new German Finance Minister Christian Lindner, swear Do the same thing.

“A lot of people are watching inflation trends,” he said in a speech on Tuesday, adding that the German government “is watching this debate closely.”

However, some economists expect inflation to moderate later this year.

Oxford Economics economist Ben May said the pace of price growth in the US and the euro zone is almost at its peak, while Canada and the UK will peak in April. Consumer price growth in advanced economies “will fall sharply in 2022,” reflecting a combination of weak energy costs and core inflation, he said.

Barclays economist Silvia Ardagna said euro zone inflation is “likely to peak at the end of 2021”. However, she added that record levels of producer prices in most countries in November “suggest that inflationary pressures are likely to persist in the coming months as businesses may eventually pass on higher production costs to consumers”.