Economists have been pondering a conundrum of the global economy in recent years, The Wall Street Journal writes today: How come several of the world's industrialized nations have seen a period of sustained growth, but that growth hasn't led to inflation as it has in the past?

In July, consumer price inflation in the U.S. was just 1.7 percent despite a growth rate of around 3 percent. Japan's inflation rate is near zero, and the EU is seeing inflation at about 1.5 percent.

So what gives? Usually, when growth accelerates in a country, companies are pushed to produce more, labor markets become tight, workers demand raises, disposable income grows and prices rise.

There are a lot of theories about why prices have remained low in a period of growth -- from the rise of companies like Amazon to the gig economy. But some economists, including one from the Dallas Fed, are saying the linkage between growth and inflation may be broken because of globalization.

From The Journal:

"Companies can outsource production or import if the wage bill starts getting too high, rather than raise prices. China has flooded international markets with cheaper goods, ultimately pushing down prices."

The Journal points to research by Enrique Martínez-García, senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, that also may give some clues as to what's been happening.

Martínez-García published a paper in July that looked at the effects of globalization on monetary policy. The paper makes for dense reading, but the upshot is that the Dallas Fed has started "to seriously consider the impact of globalization on inflation," Martínez-García told the Journal.

The phenomenon has all sorts of implications for the stock and bond markets, the Journal said, as investors have typically considered inflation as an indicator for growth.

And that economists are grappling to explain what workers on the ground are experiencing is worth taking note of.