Joe Biden’s historic cancellation of billions of dollars in student loan debt, a move long-awaited by progressives, has come at a precarious moment for the US economy.

“This means people are going to start to finally crawl out from under that mountain of debt?.?.?. to finally think about buying a home or starting a family or starting a business,” the US president told reporters at the White House on Wednesday. “And by the way, when this happens, the whole economy is better off.”

While those words delighted those waiting for him to fulfil his campaign pledge to help borrowers drowning in student debt, they also worried some economists who believe that with consumer price inflation at a 40-year high, this is the worst time to give it further fuel.