Macroeconomic Data Paper Instructions


Macroeconomic Analysis
Economics 316
Dr. Stonebraker

 

ASSIGNMENT:

Choose a member country of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development) other than the U.S. [Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,  Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg,  Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand,  Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom], gather the needed macroeconomic data and answer the following questions:

  1. What is the current level of GDP per capita? How does this compare to the U.S.?
  2. What has been the growth rate of real GDP in recent years? [The growth rates listed in OECD in Figures - see below - are real growth rates.]  At this rate, how many years will it take for real GDP to double?  How does this growth rate compare to typical growth rate for the U.S. economy?
  3. What is the current rate of unemployment?  How has it changed in recent years?  Is it high or low compared to current U.S. standards?
  4. What part of the unemployment rate represents long-term (12 months or more) unemployment?  How does this compare to the U.S.?
  5. What is the current rate of consumer price inflation?  Is it high or low compared to current U.S. standards?
  6. How big are government net revenues as a percent of GDP?  How does this compare to the U.S.?
  7. How large is net government lending as a percent of GDP? How does this compare to the U.S.?
  8. What is the net national saving rate?  How does it compare to the U.S. rate?
  9. What is the current exchange rate with respect to the dollar?  Has it been appreciating or depreciating with respect to the U.S. dollar in recent years?

The best source of data will be OECD in Figures 2007.  Most of the data can be found there. Other good sources of data include:

  1. For links to official statistical agencies of specific countries, check the International Statistical Agencies listed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  2. The Statistical Appendix of the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook has ten year's worth of data for growth in real GDP, inflation rates and unemployment rates for most countries of the world. Current data by country on per capita GDP, unemployment and inflation are available at the CIA World Factbook.
  3. The Comparative International Statistics section of the U.S. Statistical Abstract contains historical data on exchange rates by country (Table 1369) and current exchange rates can be found at Oanda.com
  4. Current data on many of the variables by country also can be found in the Weekly Indicators section of the Economist.

LENGTH/FORMAT:

The answers to each question should be written in paragraph form. You must reference the particular data sources used. The paper should use one inch margins, Times New Roman 12-point or Arial 11-point font, and double-spacing. 

DATES:

A hard copy of the assignment is due by the end of class on Thursday, February 7.  For each day that the assignment is late (including weekends and vacations), ONE LETTER will be deducted from its grade.

GRADING:

The assignment will account for five percent of your course grade. The grade will be based upon both substance and form. I will pay attention to how accurately you have answered the relevant questions. I also will pay attention to the spelling, grammar, and overall clarity of your explanations.