Inflation could be repeating the trajectory of the late 1960s, which set in motion sustained high inflation in the following decade, according to top economic historian Niall Ferguson. Speaking to CNBC on Sept. 3, Ferguson said that policymakers are now facing a new challenge in the form of rising inflation after responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in a manner similar to the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. “What is interesting about disasters is that one can lead to another. You can go from a public health disaster to a fiscal, monetary, and potentially inflationary disaster,” Ferguson said at the Ambrosetti Forum in Italy. “It is not such a big disaster, it doesn’t kill people, but an inflation lift-off would be a problem.” Americans continue to face higher costs as U.S. consumer prices rose 5.4 percent in July from a year earlier, marking the largest annual jump since August 2008. The U.S. Federal Reserve and many …