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Unlike cathode-ray tube and plasma screens, the liquid-crystal display system in computer monitors and televisions does not produce light by itself. A bright back light shines through the LCD, where the light takes on the display’s colors and graphical shapes. As of roughly 2005, the lighting technology has been shifting from cold-cathode fluorescent lighting to white light-emitting diodes. WLEDs consume less power and are more environmentally friendly than CCFLs.
Economic indicators reflect how the economy of a country is performing. For the economy to grow, there are several important indicators that have to perform positively. These indicators allow the market to allocate goods and services efficiently. The most significant indicators of the economic performance are inflation and interest rates, Gross Domestic Product and the labor market.
Many different variables are used as indicators for the state of the United States economy. They are gathered by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. These figures in combination are used by economists to achieve an overall understanding of the health of the American economy and predict future economic trends.
Performance indicators are reports and categories of data that allow analysts to successfully evaluate the success of a company or industry from a quantitative standpoint. Performance indicators are used in nearly every for-profit business and have a wide number of particular applications. Most companies use them for strategy and decision making. Investors also use performance indicators to chart the success of a market or sector. When it comes to producing and selling goods, the retail sales report is among the most important performance indicators.
Economic indicators provide an idea about the state of the economy and also of particular industries. Investors use such indicators to get information to make investment decisions. There are a number of such economic indicators that provide an idea about the state of the U.S. footwear industry. Industry associations, such as the American Apparel & Footwear Association, AAFA, are good sources for input.
The term economic efficiency refers to the concept of allocating the available resources to maximize output. In other words, an efficient organization, or economy in general, is the one that can produce and distribute its product at the lowest possible cost. You cannot measure economic efficiency based on data, such as gross business income, because small ventures with a low income also begin with minimal resources, compared to major corporations. Instead, the four basic indicators used to measure efficiency are liquidity, leverage, activity and profitability.
Comparative economic indicators are the data used to measure the performance of one national or regional economy against another. Since each country's area and population are different, not every economic indicator is suitable for comparison. For example, contrasting the economic success of China and Switzerland on the basis on nominal gross domestic product is misleading. Instead, factors such as GDP per capita, annual growth, unemployment rates and inflation rates, as well as interest rates, allow us to compare economies under relatively equal conditions.
Lagging economic indicators are changes in an area of the economy that take place after a specific economic event. The other two economic indicators, leading and coincidental, are changes that take place before and doing a specific economic event, respectively. Economists use lagging indicators to prove that a certain change is happening and that an economic downturn or upturn has indeed occurred. This gives economists, businesses and the general public a heads up on which way the economy is heading.
Economic indicators are official statistics used by governments, businesses, consumers and investors to gauge the state of an economy or economies. Economists use this information as a way to establish where an economy is and forecast where it is headed. These indicators can be anything from the unemployment rate to information about the housing market.
When the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announces the unemployment rate every month, financial markets respond instantaneously to the news, the chairman of the Federal Reserve comments on the state of the economy based on the announcement, and many citizens reflect on the stability of their own employment situation. However, the unemployment rate has many limitations as an economic indicator.
Economic development refers to the process by which a community, nation or region of the world raises its living standards. Often, this involves transforming the area's economy from one based on agriculture to a modern industrial system. Economists, demographers, sociologists and public policy makers rely on multiple indicators -- economic and social -- to gauge the pace of economic development.
Inflation is when the general prices of goods and services in the country are increasing. Economists consider a steady but low rate of inflation as a positive economic indicator because it signifies general growth in the national economy. The rising prices of goods and services have direct effect on jobs. Cost-push inflation, demand-pull inflation, stagflation and disinflation all have an effect on jobs.
Thanks to inflation, the cost of living the same lifestyle as the year before typically increases. As far back as 1975, the cost of living has never gone down from the previous year, according to the Social Security Administration. Between the years of 1999 and 2009, the average cost of living adjustment for Social Security recipients sat at 2.8 percent, based on yearly percent increases from the Social Security Administration.
While there is a wide range of economic indicators, all of which give a different perspective on the general health of the economy, there are two key indicators that, when combined, give a broad-based view of how the entire economy is doing. These indicators are gross domestic product (GDP) and consumer confidence. If you can define them and apply them to your personal finances, you can take a major step toward predicting your personal economic future.
Indicators of economic activity are statistics or metrics that can be used to measure the health of a particular economy. Indicators of economic activity may be used to measure the economy of a country, region or even the global economy as a whole. Economic activity indicators are used to estimate economic activity, which serves as an indication of how well an economy is doing. This information can be used by governments to assess the success of, or need for, economic programs. It may also be used by businesses to determine if a particular market offers opportunities. Being familiar with a…
A slump in the economy, no matter how brief in duration, can feel like an eternity. Job losses, lower sales and profits, and declining stock indices leave families, businesses and investors asking, “When does it all end?” From Main Street to Wall Street, people search for signs of better times. Some economists and investment specialists have identified leading indicators – so named because they often identify emerging economic trends – with a track of record of predicting an improving economy.
Facts about the economy are often seen in newspapers or on news reports. The news will often speak of “economic indicators” without explaining what the term means and how the indicators reflect the effects of the economy on the common man. Economic indicators are relatively simple to understand if an explanation is given. Common economic indicators are retail sales, unemployment rates, stock exchange movements, currency fluctuations, export and import figures and the like.
Investors wait anxiously for the monthly or quarterly announcement of economic indicator figures: A sharp decline in the employment rate can shave hundreds off of the Dow, whereas news of an increase in retail spending can cause an upward jolt. However, the government also pays close attention: These figures reveal the overall health of the economy.
The health of an economy is typically tied to indices showing economic activity and growth. Indicators tied to such key categories as employment, personal income, consumer consumption and confidence, housing prices, and corporate activities and profits are all used to measure how well (or how poorly) an economy is performing. The Gross National Product (GNP) is the most well known of the economic indices, but there are individual factors that contribute to the GNP that indicate the economic health of a country.
Fed rate cuts reduce the cost of borrowing for many consumer and commercial loans. Because of the widespread influence of Fed rate cuts throughout the economy, many people believe that Fed cuts also lower mortgage rates. In reality, Fed cuts have no direct bearing on mortgage rates. Mortgage rates are directly impacted by activity in the bond market, especially the market for mortgage-backed securities (MBS).
The prime rate is what lenders charge their best customers. It is a "lagging" economic indicator that changes after a change in the overall economy. When the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) lowers the federal funds rate, the prime rate will decrease. When the FOMC raises the federal funds rate, the prime rate will increase. Consumer loans, such as auto, home equity mortgage and credit card loans, are based on the prime rate.
Footwear retailers use the same economic indicators apparel retailers use to evaluate the state of their businesses and where they are heading. The two key indicators vital to the retail industry are comparative sales and sales per square foot.
Economies are complex mechanisms describing the interaction of numerous fields of activity, such as trade, borrowing and lending, saving and spending. Changes in the circumstances affecting any part of an economy can have an impact on the economy as a whole, such as when rising interest rates lead to a fall in borrowing for investment and home purchases. Economists examine various numerical indicators to determine whether an economy is expanding or in decline. Indicators that show the state of a specific aspect of an economy at a particular point in time are known as coincidental indicators, while others, which only…
Many people hear about economic indicators on the news but may have no idea what they actually mean. They are not as complicated as you may think and many are simple statistics. These indicators look at things such as the production of the country, the prices of goods consumers use and the cost of labor. The government uses these indicators to assess the country's economy in order to set policies.
Retail sales represent an important component of overall economic output. Consequently, retail sales figures stand as a significant economic indicator. Every month, the government releases a report on retail sales, based on information collected from retailers across the country. This indicator helps gauge the nation's gross domestic product (GDP), which affects investment decisions on Wall Street and monetary policy by the Federal Reserve.
While economic indicators are prepared and released regularly to help investors and policy makers grasp the direction of economic changes, these indicators describe extremely complex phenomena and must be revised regularly to reflect more complete and current data. There is no such thing as a fixed "actual" economic indicator because every indicator is merely a new revision of the data in a very complex statistical analysis. The more time passes, the more information is gathered and the more exact estimates and revisions become.
If you watch CNBC or read the business section of the newspaper, you'll often come across the term "economic indicators." It sounds intimidating, but the phrase simply refers to a statistic about the economy that says something about its direction or recent past performance. Economic indicators are often used to predict the direction of the economy. Examples of economic indicators include unemployment and interest rate statistics. You can use economic indicators in your personal life to help you make decisions about investing, home-buying, retirement and other money matters.
Forecasting helps economists and business analysts estimate future economic conditions based on leading indicators--data that show changes ahead in the overall economy. These indicators help forecast the direction of the economy.
Leading indicators are measures of economic activity that give a preview of the economy's future direction. Government agencies and non-governmental organizations release these data, which are closely watched by investors and policy makers. Leading indicators on the overall economy, inflation, unemployment and other measures help drive investment decisions and economic policy.
