Forbes Price Index Of Luxury Goods Keeps Pace With Inflation

The Forbes Cost of Living Extremely Well Index (CLEWI) is to the very rich what the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index is to ordinary people. Our tracking of the price fluctuations of items that are affordable only to those with very substantial means provides a useful barometer of economic forces at the top end of the market.  Over the 12 months ended in August–a period in which the aggregate net worth of the  Forbes 400 Richest People in America rose 8%, from $1.27 trillion up to $1.37 trillion–the CLEWI rose 1%, keeping pace with the Consumer Price Index’s 1.1%.

In 1976, we created the index, which is based on a selection of 40 goods and services reserved to very rich customers. This index is set to 100 in 1976 and had been continuously increasing since then.