CPI versus PCE: two measures of inflation
CPI and PCE differ in coverage, weights, formulas and revision practices. Choose the measure that fits your question.
Learn to read economic data
Practical guides to definitions, transformations and revisions that change how economic figures should be interpreted.
Start with your question: choose the right economic measure.
Inflation versus the level of prices
A slower inflation rate means prices rise more slowly. It does not necessarily mean prices fall.
Payroll jobs versus employed people
The establishment and household surveys measure different populations and concepts. Their monthly changes need not match.
Nominal versus real GDP
Nominal GDP measures production at current prices. Real GDP adjusts for price change using chain-type methods.
What annualized quarterly growth means
Annualized growth expresses a quarterly pace as if it continued for four quarters. It is not a forecast.
Seasonal adjustment in economic data
Seasonal adjustment removes estimated recurring calendar patterns to help compare adjacent periods.
Percentage points versus percentage change
Subtract two percentages to get percentage points. Divide levels to calculate a relative percentage change.
Why economic data gets revised
New reports, improved source data, benchmarks and method changes can revise earlier economic estimates.
Begin with the measurement question
An indicator is a defined statistic, not an all-purpose account of the economy. Start by asking what is measured, whose activity is covered, which period it represents and whether the unit is a level, a rate or a change. The guides below explain distinctions that frequently cause a reading to be misinterpreted.
Price indexes and inflation rates answer different questions. A falling inflation rate can accompany a rising price level. Jobs counted on payrolls are not the same as employed people counted in a household survey. Nominal output can rise because of prices, while real output aims to isolate changes in production.
Check comparisons and release versions
Adjacent-period and year-over-year comparisons use different intervals. Annualized quarterly growth compounds a quarterly pace; it is not a forecast. Percentage points subtract rates, while relative percentage change divides values. Seasonal adjustment estimates recurring calendar patterns, and revised factors can change earlier adjusted readings.
A later estimate for the same period is a revision, not another period’s economic growth. A frozen dataset can reproduce a report’s figures, but a current revised history cannot automatically recreate what was known before acquisition. Cite the snapshot and source release instead of relying on the webpage’s date alone.
Apply the definitions to the data
Each guide links to relevant indicator pages and primary documentation. The charts retain their active transformation in headings, tables and exports. Reading the definition alongside the history helps you recognize what an apparent pattern can support and where it stops.
The inflation and real-wage calculators show their formulas and input limits. They are educational tools for completed intervals. They do not create personal forecasts, household-specific inflation estimates or borrowing and investment recommendations. For a figure used in a published report, keep the exact code, period, unit, adjustment and snapshot together.