Reuters

UPDATE 3-Biden advisers say pandemic, not policies, fueling inflation

U.S. President Joe Biden’s economic advisers defended his policies on Sunday amid rising inflation that they said was a global issue related to the COVID-19 pandemic, not a result of the administration’s programs. Republicans have pounced on inflation worries, claiming that the increase reflects Biden’s sweeping spending agenda. The United States is hardly alone in enduring a bout of stiff inflation, with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development showing inflation running high across its 38 member countries and oil prices quadrupling in the last 18 months as economies reopened from COVID-19 shutdowns.