If oil prices continue to normalize, inflation pressures should ease and central banks should have less need to tighten aggressively, Columbia Threadneedle Investments' Anthony Willis says in a note. "In that environment, the outlook remains positive, and markets may find that the second half is less about reacting to shocks than playing for time while the data provide a clearer signal," the senior economist says. That said, investors should stay alert to the risk that inflation proves stickier than expected, particularly if oil prices rise again or domestic price pressures broaden, he says. "But the central case is more constructive than it was at the height of recent market anxiety." (emese.bartha@wsj.com)