Cents and Sensibility: the Inflation Guy Podcast
Business:Investing
“Hedonic adjustment” is a curse word among those who think that inflation figures are all scrubbed to look nice by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (if they are, the BLS did a pretty rotten job of it over the last couple of years!), but it is not nearly as sinister as you might think it is. In this episode, the Inflation Guy goes inside-baseball again to explain hedonic adjustment, and the offsetting effect that no one ever seems to complain about because it pushes inflation higher.
It's okay to hate inflation, but don't blame hedonic adjustment! Or the Inflation Guy. He's just the messenger.
NOTES
To Subscribe to Quarterly Inflation Outlook: https://inflationguy.blog/shop/
Podcast Callback: Ep. 4: The Making of an Inflation Index
Website reference: BLS Link to Hedonic Adjustment Q&A
Website reference: BLS Link to Hedonic Adjustment for Men’s Suits
Research reference: Johnson, D.S., S.B. Reed, and K.J. Stewart . 2006. “Price Measurement in the United States: a Decade Aftert he Boskin Report.” Monthly Labor Review 129 (5): 10–19.
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