Seek out the best of users of information. But before we all get worked up, let's look at deflation and talk a bit more about the impact of the Asian crisis on domestic and global prices. Deflation is different from Disinflation.
Deflation is the term for pervasive declines in the prices of goods and services in an economy.
Disinflation, while not technically recognized in most textbooks yet, has come to describe an environment of lower inflation. From where we are in the U.S. economy today, disinflationary indications are openly greeted as positive. Inflation means anything you buy in future will be more expensive than today, thus a dollar today is worth-less when you spend it. Employees demand higher wages in the face of inflation, which serves to pinch margins and slow earnings. Since earnings drive the business cycle, declining earnings lead to recession.