Is the global economy stumbling into ‘the tepid Twenties’?

After a spell of soaring prices and steep interest rates, Christine Lagarde this week allowed herself a moment of optimism.

“We are clearly seeing signs of recovery,” the European Central Bank president said on Wednesday. A “phenomenal” job market would be matched by a rebound that, although “timid” at first, would pick up speed over the course of 2024, she added.

Her relieved tone — reflected elsewhere in a sunny Washington…