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Economic Indicators

Employment

Key labor market indicators that signal economic health and consumer spending power.

Unemployment Rate
U-3 (Official)
—
U-6 (Broader)
—
As of N/A

U-3: Official rate - unemployed workers actively seeking jobs.
U-6: Includes discouraged workers + part-time for economic reasons.

Initial Jobless Claims
—
No data available

Inflation

Price stability measures that influence Fed policy and purchasing power. The Fed targets 2% annual inflation.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)
Year-over-Year
—
Month-over-Month
—
As of N/A

Fed targets 2% annual inflation. YoY shows the 12-month trend; MoM shows recent momentum.

PCE InflationFed Preferred
—
6-Month Annualized
As of N/A

Dallas Fed Trimmed Mean PCE. Removes extreme price changes for a cleaner inflation signal. Fed targets 2%.

Economic Growth

Measures of overall economic output and expansion.

Real GDP
—
No data available
Nominal GDP
—
No data available
Real GDP Growth Rate
—
No data available

Fed Policy

Interest rate targets set by the Federal Reserve to manage inflation and employment.

Federal Funds Rate
—
No data available

Consumer

Measures of consumer confidence that can predict future spending.

Consumer Sentiment
—
No data available

Understanding Economic Indicators

Leading vs. Lagging Indicators

  • Leading: Consumer Sentiment, Jobless Claims - predict future trends
  • Coincident: GDP, Employment - reflect current conditions
  • Lagging: Unemployment Rate, CPI - confirm trends after they occur

U-3 vs U-6 Unemployment

  • U-3: Headline rate - only counts people actively job hunting
  • U-6: Broader measure - adds discouraged workers and involuntary part-timers
  • The gap between U-3 and U-6 reveals hidden labor market slack
  • U-6 is typically 3-4 percentage points higher than U-3

CPI vs PCE Inflation

  • CPI: Fixed basket of goods, updated less frequently
  • PCE: Accounts for consumer substitution behavior
  • PCE is typically 0.3-0.5% lower than CPI
  • Fed targets 2% annual PCE inflation

Why These Indicators Matter

  • Employment: Jobs drive consumer spending (70% of GDP)
  • Inflation: Affects purchasing power and Fed policy
  • GDP: Broad measure of economic health
  • Fed Funds: Influences borrowing costs throughout the economy

Release Schedule

  • Weekly (Thursdays): Initial Jobless Claims
  • Monthly: Unemployment Rate (1st Friday), CPI (mid-month), Consumer Sentiment
  • Quarterly: GDP (advance, 2nd, 3rd estimates)
  • 8x/year: Fed Funds Rate (FOMC meetings)

Data sourced from FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data), the official database of the St. Louis Fed.

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