The simple average of the rates, however, declined to 2-3 percent after the start of the 1990s, and in the second half of the decade remained at 2-3 percent in the United States, United Kingdom, and Italy, and fell below 2 percent in the other G-7 countries.
Japan has been experiencing gradual deflation, as consumer prices have ranged from -1 to zero percent year on year since the middle of 1998. In Europe and the United States, this disinflationary trend has brought real economic benefits, by securing a stable foundation for economic activity. The United States enjoyed a long-lasting economic expansion accompanied by price stability during the 1990s.