There is no CPI in a barter economy as there is no money in such an economy. The CPI is essential to update or index or inflation-adjust the real value of constant items in the economy with continuous measurement of financial capital maintenance in units of constant purchasing power being used as the fundamental model of accounting. The CPI is used to calculate the destruction of real value in constant items never maintained in low inflationary economies using HCA as the fundamental model of accounting.
The real value of money is automatically updated by inflation and deflation. Whereas the price of a constant item should change inversely with the change in the real value of money, the real value of money changes inversely with the change in the level of the CPI.
The CPI is the sine qua non in an inflationary and deflationary economy for correcting the problem created by the fact that money is the only universal unit of account that is not a stable unit of measure: it is applied without a fundamental constant. It would be impossible to measure inflation and deflation without the CPI. Consequently it would also have been impossible to stop the destruction of the real value in constant real value non-monetary items never maintained (generally equity of companies using HCA with no fixed assets or not sufficient revaluable fixed assets to maintain equity’s real value) during low inflation.
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Nicolaas Smith
realvalueaccounting@yahoo.com
Copyright © 2010 Nicolaas J Smith