report the most recent estimates of the US economy below:
1.    GDP growth rate (nominal, quarterly).
2.    Rate of inflation,
3.    Rate of unemployment
4.    Prime nominal interest rate (please provide definition)
5.    Discount nominal interest rate (please provide definition)
6.    Federal funds nominal interest rate (please provide definition)

Please list the sources of your information.

II). Consider the information below of a hypothetical country A as follows:
a.    The population is 305 million people,
b.    The number of 16 years old or younger is 75 million people,
c.    The labor force is 160 million people, and
d.    The rate of unemployment is 9.7%.

Please estimate the following:
1.    What is the number of people who are unemployed?
2.    What is the labor force participation rate?

III). Find out and report the CPI (Consumer Price Index) from 1980-2013 on an annual (not monthly) basis.

As an example, I have listed below a table with CPI data from 1999-2002.
Year      CPI
1999    166.6
2000    172.2
2001    177.1
2002    179.9

You should expand this table to include data from 1980-1998 and 2003-2013.

IV). Use the Inflation Calculator to estimate the buying power today (in year 2013) of $100 in year 1980.

V). Find out and report the Unemployment Rates for the months Jan 2010 – Sept 2013 of the following categories:
A) On the average during this period, which group had the highest and which one the lowest rate of unemployment?
B) Please use Excel to draw graphs of the unemployment rates among the following groups:
1) 20 Yrs & Over a) Men and b) Women
2) a) White, b) Black, and c) Hispanic
3) 25 Yrs. & Over, a) Less than a High School Diploma, b) High School Graduates No College, c) Some College or Associate Degree, d) Bachelor’s Degree and Higher.
(Hints: Use the BLS web site http://www.bls.gov and select the tab [Databases & Tables]. Then, select Unemployment, and the TOP PICKS  for the unemployment statistics.
For the CPI, you select Inflation & Prices and then
All Urban Consumers (Current Series)
(Consumer Price Index – CPI)
U.S. All items, 1982-84=100

VI). National Accounts: (http://www.bea.gov/)
(Click on Gross Domestic Product (GDP), then on Gross Domestic Product under News Releases, then on Tables Only (Excel •148KB) – on the right side – and select Table 3 tab of the spreadsheet entitled, Table 3.–Gross Domestic Product and Related Measures: Level and Change From Preceding Period).
a.    Find out and report the 2013 figures of the following national accounts:
1. Personal consumption expenditures (C),
2. Gross private domestic investment (I),
3. Exports (X),
4. Imports (M),
5. Government consumption expenditures and gross investment (G),
6. Gross domestic product (GDP).
b.    Verify that the above figures conform the equation GDP= C + I + G + X – M
c.    Estimate personal consumption (C), gross private domestic investment (I), exports (X), imports (M), and government consumption expenditures (G) as a percentage of the GDP.
d.    Estimate the difference between X and M, (X – M =?). What is the name of this outcome?

VII). (http://www.conference-board.org)
1. a) What is the most recent value of the Consumer Confidence and Consumer Sentiment indexes? (Please indicate the values of these indexes),
b) How have these indexes changed since the beginning of last year? Did they increase, decrease, or remained unchanged?

2. (http://www.conference-board.org/data/bcicountry.cfm?cid=1)
a) What was most recent change in the leading, coincidence, and lagging indicators?
b) What was most recent values the leading, coincidence, and lagging indicators?
c) How does the Conference Board estimate the Consumer Confidence Index?
d) How many indicators make up the leading index?
e) Which component of the leading index had the largest negative impact?
6. What is the difference between leading, coincidence, and lagging indicators and what do they suppose to indicate?

B). Business Cycles: (http://www.nber.org/cycles/recessions.html)
1. Who determines the beginning and/or end of an economic recession?
2. How is an economic recession and expansion defined?
3. What date was the most recent peak?
4. When was the longest economic expansion and how many years lasted?
5. How does the financial press often state the definition of a recession? Is this definition the same with the one used by the NBER (National Bureau of Economic Research)? If not, what is the major reason?