Although Every New Day Brings a Confusing Succession of Reports on the economy, most of us find it almost impossible to use these indicators to form a coherent picture of what is going on. This book was written to help non-economists, whether journalists, managers, students, or simply individuals, to do just that.
The opening chapters of the book explain in straightforward terms how households, enterprises, governments, and foreigners play their roles in the economy and how their economic activities are measured. The 'how' and 'why' of monetary and fiscal policy and their interactions, are clearly spelled out. And a special chapter deals with the way that wages and employment are determined.
The last two chapters of the book provide a brief but detailed look at the major economic indicators of the Canadian and U.S. economies, such as the Consumer Price Index, Housing Starts, and employment data. What information do they contain? When are they released?At what website can they be found? How reliable are they? What is their significance? These questions are answered in a convenient form, to help the reader weigh the information the indicators contain in order to make use of them to anticipate economic developments.
For the businessperson who needs to understand the economy's impact on the bottom line, for the student who wants to bridge the gap between theory and the 'real world' for the individual who wants to make better investment decisions, the Handbook provides clear, concise guidance.
