Economic Indicators

A primary goal of this blog - and of the economic education services The Delasol Group provides - is to get people to relate how things in the larger economy affect their daily lives. Looking at national or regional economic data and news is an area of study called Macroeconomics. In contrast, Microeconomics focuses on a smaller ("micro") portion of society - individuals and businesses. While much of the information on this blog deals with your personal economy and other Microeconomic issues, it's important to keep up with Macro news too.



Case in point: the National Employment Situation.

Now this is the type of information that moves markets; literally. In fact, this data is so important that it's essentially locked up until the very minute it's released to the media and the public. National statistics that allow us to gauge how healthy the economy is and predicts future performance are called economic indicators. Here's a few of them here. The National Employment Situation is one too.

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that the jobless rate rose from 8.5% in March to 8.9% in April and that roughly half a million people lost their job last month. Even with this dour information, it's optimistic that April's decrease was the smallest in the last six months. This could mean that the recession may be reaching a bottom - a turnaround point. If you visit the BLS website and search for the Employment Situation report, you can get even more details such as the unemployment rate by race, gender and industry. So how does this economic indicator affect you?

Let's imagine you were unhappy at your current job. You may be weighing your options: Should I go back to school for more education? Should I start my own business? Should I transfer to a new city? Awareness of what's going in the in Macroeconomy can help us make routine Microeconomic decisions. Knowing that businesses are still laying off workers may persuade you to keep your current position. However the fact that less folks were laid off in April compared to the previous six months may encourage you to explore your options and watch how the situation changes in the coming months.

We will continue to explore how changes in the Macroeconomy affect us as individuals. What other economic news have you heard about that you feel directly affects you?