Economic numbers
Make sense of inflation, jobs, household credit and growth. Follow what each measure includes, how comparisons work and what the numbers can tell you.
Inflationexplainer
The difference starts with what shelter includes and how its components count. Understanding rents facing movers also requires looking at leases, observation timing and revisions.
Jobsexplainer
The questions behind labor and inflation figures explain how apparently conflicting expectations can coexist—and what the averages leave unknown.
Jobsexplainer
What July’s labor figures reveal about recruiting and departures—and where their meaning stops.
Inflationexplainer
Different coverage explains why the measures can diverge; rounding explains the unchanged GDP display.
Jobsexplainer
The broader measure captures unmet demand for work among some employed people, too.
Inflationexplainer
A mortgage-reporting gap complicates the Q2 decline. Repayment measures offer a different, still qualified view of household finances.
Inflationexplainer
Modest activity growth and very slight employment growth require a closer look at regional conditions—and how the evidence is gathered.
Jobsexplainer
Employer categories, survey timing and unemployment definitions help job seekers understand what the employment report measures.
Inflationbrief
Core excludes food and energy, but prominent inflation-linked benefits and TIPS use all-items measures.
Consumer creditexplainer
Understanding the increase starts with what remains owed—and requires separate evidence about repayment.
