 “The Productivity and Costs Report” is a quarterly release from

the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) .

 It measures the level of output that is achieved by businesses per
unit of labor.
 Output is measured by using previously released gross domestic
product(GDP).
 Input is measured in hours worked and the associated costs of
that labor.
STRENGTHS:
 Presents the results of many complex calculations .
 GDP can grow without causing concurrent gains in inflation.
 Non profit groups are removed from calculations.
WEAKNESSES:
 It does not provide in time.
 No new series of data is released.
 The institute for Supply Management (ISM) is responsible for maintaining
the Purchasing Managers Index.
 It is the headline indicator in the monthly “ISM Report on Business”.
 ISM is a non profit group.
The PMI is made up of several different surveys that include:
 New orders
 Factory orders
 Employment levels etc.
 It is important indicator for investors looking for clues about economic
growth.
STRENGTHS:
 It gives report in time.
 A good predictor for future releases(GDP,BLS)
 Commodities such as silver ,steel and copper are reported individually.
WEAKNESSES:
o Only covers manufacturing sector.
o Regional reports may have high correlations.
 This indicator tracks the dollar value of merchandise sold within
the retail trade by tacking sampling of companies.
 Point -of -sale businesses and non-profit store retailers are
used.
 Companies of all sizes are used in the survey(Wal-Mart).
 It is used by government agencies ,economists , academic
analysts and researchers.
STRENGTHS:
 It is extremely timely.
 Data release is robust.
 It is easy to understand.
 It is adjusted seasonally, monthly.
WEAKNESSES:
o 20% of all retail sales take place during Christmas/New Year.
o Retail sales business is often volatile from month to month.
o Does not account for retail services, only physical merchandise.
 It is the balance of trade between the U.S and rest of the world.
 It measures the value of country’s exports of goods and services
against imports from other countries.
 It is important component of their current account.
 Compared to other indicators this report is relatively hard to
estimate outside of petroleum.
STRENGTHS:
 Monthly releases are concise and give results in nominal terms.
 Largest percentages of balance , as well as rates of change.
 Results shown against the backdrop of the past 6 months.
WEAKNESSES:
 Monthly report does not show complete transaction.
 Inconclusive as to the long term effects of stock market and
economy of a trade deficit or surplus.
 Volatile due to oil price and seasonality.