Why not the current year?
We use annual data for our computations, therefore, it is necessary to have an annual observation for both the initial year and the desired year. For the indices based on GDP, it is only after the year is over that GDP can be measured. For price indices, the annual observations are usually the average of monthly observations. It would not be valid to compare a monthly observation in the current year with an annual observation in an earlier year.
We have created many of the historical series in MeasuringWorth, but the most recent observations are obtained from government agencies. The annual CPI and RPI observations are usually published in the first month or two of the next year, however the numbers for GDP do not come out until later. We strive to get the new numbers up as quickly as possible.
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