This list reflects the data I use most often, especially for the Businomics Newsletter.
FRED database
Most U.S. economic data and some foreign data are available through FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data), a free service of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. I use FRED in four ways:
- I search for the data and look at a chart on the FRED website.
- I download data for use in a spreadsheet or statistical program.
- I use the FRED Excel add-in to easily update data for new releases and revisions.
- I create sets of data series that I can readily access on the FRED website.
I usually begin by trying to find the data from the source agency, listed below. It’s easier to use FRED when I have the data series’ exact name and a report showing its most recent value. You can try a Google search and including “Fred” in the search, such as “Industrial Production Fred”
Population
Note on language: In the United States, the Census is the actual count, conducted every 10 years. Estimates are estimates of annual population, including the census years plus the years in between censuses (called “intercensal” years). Projections are forecasts of future population.
Estimates:
https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html
Estimates are available for the nation, states, metropolitan areas, counties and cities.
Official definitions of metropolitan areas are at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/OMB-Bulletin-23-01.pdf, but updated periodically in other publications. I find Wikipedia the easiest source to use. For example, us Google to search for “metropolitan areas Illinois” then select the Wikipedia entry.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and related concepts
Source is U.S. Bureau of Economic analysis, https://www.bea.gov/. I usually use the breakdown of National Income and Product Accounts, https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=survey
Remember that “real” means inflation-adjusted.
Employment
For general data, the best first stop is the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) monthly release, The Employment Situation. I also monitor employment quits, hires and open positions through the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. A useful leading indicator is the report on initial claims for unemployment insurance.
For specific employment data, such as for a particular industry, use the BLS website at http://stats.bls.gov/data/. Scroll down to the Employment section; then choose more specific concepts. I typically use the “One Screen” selection.
Consumer Spending
The most comprehensive consumer spending data are available through the Bureau of Economic Analysis as part of the GDP data set. Start at https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=survey
Select “Section 2 – PERSONAL INCOME AND OUTLAYS”
Varying levels of detail are available
For very specialized data, select “Section 7 – SUPPLEMENTAL TABLES”
For even more specialized data, go to https://apps.bea.gov/iTable/?reqid=19&step=2&isuri=1&categories=survey and click on “Publication Category”, then select “Underlying Detail”
When looking at consumer spending data, keep in mind “owner’s equivalent rent.” The statistics treat homeowners as both landlords and tenants. As landlords, they rent out their homes (to themselves) and collect rents. As tenants, they pay rent (to themselves). Thus, total consumer spending consists of a large amount of “spending” that does not involve the exchange of money.
Retail Sales
Retail Sales tracks the portion of consumer spending through stores and online companies. Data are available through the Census Bureau (which tracks a lot of information not related to population) at https://www.census.gov/retail/sales.html. Bear in mind that the categories describe the store, not the type of merchandise. For example, furniture is sold in both the category called “Furniture stores” as well as “Department Stores,” and some patio furniture may also be sold in “Building material & garden equipment & supplies dealers.”
Consumer attitudes
There are two major surveys of consumers. The Index of Consumer Sentiment from the University of Michigan is my preferred measure, available at http://www.sca.isr.umich.edu/. The other is the Conference Board’s survey of Consumer Confidence at https://www.conference-board.org/topics/consumer-confidence.
Real Estate and Construction
Construction Spending
Expenditures by category is collected by the Census Bureau: https://www.census.gov/construction/c30/current/index.html. This web page shows the most recent monthly report, and the left column makes available Data and Time Series. Some of the non-residential categories are labeled differently than common industry usage, so double check the Definitions, also in the left column.
Housing Starts and Building Permits
Housing starts and building permits is one of the most popular categories, published by the Census Bureau at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/current/index.html. Data on housing completions are also available there.
Home Sales
Sales of newly-built single family homes are available from the Census at https://www.census.gov/construction/nrs/current/index.html.
Sales of existing homes are collected by the National Association of Realtors at https://www.nar.realtor/research-and-statistics/housing-statistics/existing-home-sales. Local NAR chapters and multiple listing services report city and county data. A Google search usually shows them.
Home Prices
Home prices reported by NAR and multiple listing services typically are not adjusted for quality. This problem is solved by tracking repeat sales, whereby an index is created that best fits the many instances were a house has been sold multiple times over the years. The first such data are from Case-Shiller: https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/index-family/indicators/sp-corelogic-case-shiller/sp-corelogic-case-shiller-composite/. Indices for national, state and metropolitan area home prices using this methodology are reported by the Federal Housing Finance Agency at https://www.fhfa.gov/data/hpi
Zillow also report its estimates of home prices at https://www.zillow.com/research/data/.
Apartment Rents and Vacancy
Apartment rents are available from Zillow, and also from ApartmentList at https://www.apartmentlist.com/research/category/data-rent-estimates. Apartment vacancy data are also available from ApartmentList.
Proprietary Real Estate Reports
Various real estate firms have reports available on-line. Sometimes a summary is available on-line, with more detail available by subscription or through a request placed with a broker. I often use these services:
- CB Richard Ellis: http://www.cbre.com/
- Cushman & Wakefield: http://www.cushmanwakefield.com/
- Colliers: https://www.colliers.com/en/research
In addition, some local and regional brokerages publish research reports. The best Google search includes the words “market report” along with the area (such as Phoenix) and the property type (such as office).
Industrial Activity
Industrial Production
The Federal Reserve reports industrial production and capacity utilization at https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g17/Current/default.htm. This data covers manufacturing, utilities and mining.
Manufacturing Shipments, Inventory and Orders
Data are reported by the Census Bureau at https://www.census.gov/manufacturing/m3/current/index.html. This includes the widely followed measure of orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft.
Purchasing Managers Index
This is published by the Institute for Supply Management at https://www.ismworld.org/supply-management-news-and-reports/reports/ism-report-on-business/
Inflation
Consumer and Producer Prices
The most-watched indicator is the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. BLS also produces the Producer Price Index, which tracks sales on a wholesale basis.
Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index
The Federal Reserve focuses on another measure of inflation, the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy, available in the National Income and Product Accounts. The same source is used for GDP; click on Section 2, “Personal Income and Outlays,” then Table 2.3.4, “Price Indexes for Personal Consumption Expenditures by Major Type of Product,” and scroll to the bottom of the table.
Wage Inflation
Average hourly earnings are contained in the employment data described above, but a better gauge is the Employment Cost Index, reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics at https://www.bls.gov/eci/. This measures tracks wages and benefits based on consistent jobs, providing a more accurate measure of employment cost inflation.
Financial Indicators
Interest Rates
The most commonly reported interest rates are published by the Federal Reserve system at https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h15/. All of the concepts reported here are available on FRED. Some interest rate series are published privately, such as by Moody’s or Standard and Poor’s. Some of these are available on FRED, some on proprietary databases.
Exchange Rates
Exchange rates are available from the Federal Reserve at https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h10/current/ and on FRED.
Stock Prices
Yahoo Finance makes many stock market index series available at https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/world-indices/. Some are also available on FRED.
Forecasts
Several surveys of economic forecasts are available. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Survey of Professional Forecasts not only has a quarterly update but maintains a long-running database of past forecasts. https://www.philadelphiafed.org/surveys-and-data/real-time-data-research/survey-of-professional-forecasters.
Subscribers can access the Wall Street Journal’s survey of economists at https://www.wsj.com/graphics/econsurvey/?mod=nav_top_subsection. Blue Chip Economic Indicators is a subscription survey of economic forecasts.
International Data
Most countries and the European Union have statistical agencies that publish data. Most countries have a single statistical agency, unlike the United States. Although that means one site for all data, the various national websites differ in jargon and data download systems, making the process frustrating.
The International Monetary Fund published annual data on many indicators for many countries on its World Economic Outlook site: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/SPROLLs/world-economic-outlook-databases. They include their own forecasts, which are updated semiannually.
Data and forecasts for many countries are available on a subscription basis from FocusEconomics. They survey economists specializing in particular countries, average those forecasts, and publish that along with the individual forecasts.
Other Data
A great deal of more detailed data are available, especially for specific sectors of the economy. Google is a good start. Looking at trade association magazines and news articles about a particular industry will help to find data sources.