INTEREST,DISTRIBUTION OF VALUE ADDED AND INFLATION: INFLATION-INDUCED DIFFICULTIES IN THE INTERPRETATION OF DUTCH NATIONAL ACCOUNTS*

The present paper examines the inflationary bias of sectoral income transactions in national accounting data. An inconsistency of these data is pointed out. Alternative income measures are estimated by adjusting the standard national accounting data for inflationary gains and losses. These gains and losses arise from financing by loan capital. Several issues concerning income concepts and alternative methods for the measurement of inflationary gains and losses are discussed. It is concluded that an adjustment of sectoral income data for these gains and losses produces a very different picture of the sectoral distribution of income.