Inflation is a sustained increase in the general price level. One of its key disadvantages is that fixed income earners lose.
People on fixed incomes, such as pensioners, civil servants on fixed salaries, and recipients of fixed-interest investments, receive the same nominal amount of money regardless of price changes. As prices rise during inflation, their money buys fewer goods and services, so their real income (purchasing power) declines. They become worse off even though their nominal income stays the same.
The statement that the standard of living rises is incorrect because inflation generally erodes living standards for most of the population, especially those who cannot negotiate higher wages quickly enough. Fixed income earners gaining is the opposite of what happens. Businessmen, in general, may actually benefit from inflation because the prices of their goods rise, and if they hold stocks of goods, the value of those stocks increases. They are typically among the groups that gain from inflation, not lose.
In examination questions on inflation, always distinguish between nominal values (the face value of money) and real values (what money can actually buy). Inflation reduces real values while nominal values may stay the same or even rise.
