This is not just a challenge for our largest corporations. Our small- and medium-sized enterprises are, in many respects, the engines of our economy. The rapidly changing global economy will mean that more, too, will be asked of them. 5  Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Compendium of Productivity Indicators, 2006 and 2008.
Inflation has remained high, largely reflecting continued sharp increases in the prices of globally traded commodities. Thus far, the pass-through of high raw materials costs to domestic labor costs and the prices of most other products has been limited, in part because of softening domestic demand. However, the continuation of this pattern is not guaranteed and will bear close attention.