On Nov. 14, 1972, the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 1,000 for the first time. (Then-Press Herald Business Editor Frank Sleeper marked the milestone with a Page 1 story.) On Nov. 14, 2022, exactly 50 years later, the Dow closed at 33,536. That’s a 3,253.6% increase in 50 years, or an average of 67% every year.

In 1972, the median household income in the United States was $11,120. Today it’s $70,784. That’s 536% in 50 years, or an average of 10.7% a year.

The Dow Jones Average is a measure of the wealth of corporations. The median household income is a measure of the wealth of people. Again, 67% a year for corporations and 11% a year for people over the last 50 years.

Who’s gaining from all this inflation and who’s losing? It isn’t hard to figure it out.

David Bright
Dixmont