Finance 30220

Macroeconomic Analysis

"...it is the econometric tradition, or more precisely, the 'theory of economic policy' based on this tradition, which is in need of major revision.  More particularly, I shall argue that the features which lead to success in short term forecasting are unrelated to quantitative policy evaluation, that the major econometric models are designed to perform the former task only, and that simulations using these models can, in principle, provide no useful information as to the actual consequences of alternative economic policies."         

-Robert E. Lucas Jr. ("Econometric Policy Evaluations: A Critique", 1976

Course Material  

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Quizzes/ Exams

 

     
Key Economic Indicators
  Period Latest Mkt. Exp. Prev.
Consumer Confidence July 46.6 49.0 49.3
Retail sales July -0.1% 0.8% 0.8%
GDP Q2(A) -1.0% -1.5% -6.4%
GDP Deflator Q2(A) 0 .2% 1.0% 1.9%
ISM Index July 48.9 46.5 44.8
Unemployment Rate July 9.4% 9.6% 9.5%
Non Farm Payrolls  July -247K -325K -443K
CPI Inflation July 0.0% 0.0% 0.7%
Core CPI Inflation July 0.1% 0.1% 0.2%
Trade Balance Jun -$27.0B -$28.7B -$26.0B

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