ECONOMICS 416

MACROECONOMICS
NOTES ON TERM PROJECT

The Term Project will require you to: 1) Acquire and update statistical data on macroeconomic variables, 2) Keep a running "Journal" of macroeconomic information, issues and policy, 3) Write an end of the term report summarizing macroeconomic performance, problems and policy for the first part of 1999.


The purpose of the project is to orient you to sources of macroeconomic information and to help you become familiar with current "real world" macroeconomic issues and events.

The following is a detailed description of the various parts of
the term project:

1 -Printouts of time series tables and graphs for following variables for the period 1990-1998.

Real GNP Growth
Unemployment Rate
Inflation (CPI)

See, "Sources" on webpage.

2-A Journal of clips, information, data and notes on macroeconomic performance, problems and policy throughout the term. This information can most easily be obtained by a daily scan of the Wall Street Journal. Additional sources may also be used. I expect that on average, journals will minimally include 2-3 entries per week. Entries should be recorded concisely and legibly with notation of dates and sources. The type of information that is relevant for your journal includes short notes on the following sorts of things: current data (eg. changes in GNP, prices, employment, etc), current policy (eg. changes in Fed policy, interest rates, etc,), current issues and views related to macroeconomic policy and activity (eg. views on current Fed policy, interpretations of published data, projections regarding the future, etc.).


3-A 5 page "Executive Summary" of macroeconomic performance, problems and policy for the first part of 1999, based on your journal. Appendix should consist of data tables generated in #1 above. ALL SOURCES MUST BE FOOTNOTED.