Data Points: New resources and other noteworthy developments

The Federal Reserve soon will begin a statistical study of household finances to update data collected nearly two years ago, as the recession began in late 2007.   Through its Survey of Consumer Finances, the Fed will try to re-interview participants in the 2007 polling.  Usually the survey is done every three years, but “given the serious financial and economic problems of the last two years, this special study will gather a detailed picture of the effects of those events on households and their finances.” 

Beginning this summer, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is changing the text portion of several major economic reports, including the employment situation, the consumer price index, the producer price index, and productivity and costs.  The new format, which does not include changes to data or  technical documentation, is intended to provide reports with “a tighter analytical focus, improving their utility to our data users,” the agency said.  See the timetable and contact information for comments or questions.

Among recent postings on the Treasury Department’s website is the report of the Financial Stability Oversight Board, charged with overseeing the massive Capital Purchase Program created last October. As of the close of the latest reporting period, Treasury had provided more than $203 billion in capital to 649 institutions in 48 states under the CPP.  As of June 30, 2009, 32 institutions had repaid approximately $70 billion in principal under the CPP, of which more than $68 billion was received from the 10 largest financial institutions participating. 

The Bureau of Economic Analysis has added a fresh batch to its popular frequently asked questions (FAQ) feature.  You can browse the section by broad topics, such as gross national product, or check out the “most popular answers” section.  Recent postings address the new "market-based" personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the new core PCE definition, and other changes introduced with the benchmark revisions of the national income and product accounts released in late July.

Authors of the upcoming “World Development Report 2010, Development and Climate Change” by the World Bank invite public participation in a dialog on key issues of addressing climate change problems, especially in some of the poorest nations. Experts working on the report are listed on the site as bloggers, with their specialties noted.

BLS celebrates its 125th anniversary this year.  BLS Commissioner Keith Hall recounts the June 26 ceremony and shares remarks by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and others.
The consumer price index is one of the oldest of BLS’s products.  

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