An economic indicator (or business indicator) is a
statistic about the
economy. Economic indicators allow analysis of economic performance and
predictions of future performance. Economic indicators include various indices, earnings reports, and economic summaries, such as
unemployment,
housing starts,
Consumer Price Index (a measure for
inflation),
industrial production,
bankruptcies,
Gross Domestic Product,
retail sales,
stock market prices, and
money supply changes. Economic indicators are primarily studied in a branch of
macroeconomics called "
business cycles". The leading business cycle dating committee in the
United States of America is the
National Bureau of Economic Research.
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