IMO COL increases were mainly driven by record inflation in housing due to COVID coinciding with record low interest rates. Then there was also the cartel setting the price of gas high to recoup their pandemic belt-tightening, legitimate and illegitimate supply chain issues, and corporate interests hiking prices in order to pad their profit margins as the government cheese shop was starting to close up.

These conditions were somewhat similar no matter which country you live in, and played out in similar ways on a global scale.