Discuss the unemployment and inflation rate
Other
DATA EXERCISE #2
Part 1: The Unemployment Rate (weight 30% of the assignment grade)
Complete the following exercise
Visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics Web Site,
www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.toc.htm . Select Employment Situation Summary.
Write a report (1-2 pages double – spaced) to answer the questions:
1. What month (and year) is summarized? What was the unemployment rate for that month? How does that rate compare with the rate in the previous month?
2. What were the unemployment rates for adult women, teenagers, blacks, Hispanics, and whites? How did these rates compare with those a month earlier?
3. What factors make it difficult to determine the unemployment rate?
4. Why is unemployment an economic problem?
5. What are the noneconomic effects of unemployment?
6. Who loses from unemployment?
Part 2: The Inflation Rate (weight 30% of the assignment grade)
Complete the following exercise:
Visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics Web Site,
www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.toc.htm . Select Consumer Price Index Summary.
Write a report (1-2 pages double – spaced) to answer the questions:
1. What month (and year) is summarized? What was CPI-U for that month?
2. What was the rate of inflation (percentage change in the CPI-U) for the month? How does that rate of inflation compare with the rate in the previous month?
3. Which two categories of goods or services had the greatest price increase for the month?
4. Which two categories of goods or services had the lowest price increase (or greatest price decrease) for the month?
5. Who loses from inflation?
Part 3 CPI, PPI and GDP deflator – (weight 40% of the assignment grade)
Complete the following exercise:
One of the largest single influences on the level of interest rate is inflation. There are a number of sites that report inflation over time. Go to http://www.gpoaccess.gov/eop/ – the home page of the Economic Report of the President.
Select the following three tables: (a) Choose Table B–63.—Change in special consumer price indexes, (b) Table B–68.— Change in producer price indexes for finished goods; and (c) Table B–3. Quantity and price indexes for gross domestic product, and percent changes
From the table B-63. Copy change in special consumer price indexes All Items Dec. to Dec. for 1970– the most recent year into a separate spreadsheet.
From the table B-68 Copy Change in producer price indexes for finished goods – Total finished goods – Dec. to Dec. for 1970 – the most recent year in to the same spreadsheet.
From the table B-3 Copy Percent change from preceding period- Gross domestic product (GDP) – GDP implicit price deflator for 1970– the most recent year in to the same spreadsheet.
Plot these three series on the same graph. Present the tables and the graph in your report.
b) Write a report (1 page double – spaced), which contains the analysis of the results that you received.
In this paper consider, but do not be limited to the following:
How inflation is measured? What year had the lowest level of inflation? What year had the highest level of inflation?
