Assignment

This assignment will introduce students to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data and provide students with the skills to calculate inflation and interpret the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Students learn to compare and contrast GDP and Inflation data across different countries. Note: The BLS is the primary source of information on inflation, but their data is re-posted in other sources, such as the St. Louis Federal Reserve FRED site, among others.

Develop a minimum 11-15-slide Microsoft PowerPoint presentation analyzing inflation and market structure by including the following. You will NOT present in class:

• Choose a product or service you currently consume/use, such as apparel or educational services, that is included in the CPI's "market basket." Find the annual CPI index numbers for your chosen good or service for the years 1995, 2005, 2010, and 2015. Enter those index numbers in an Excel file and calculate the percent change (inflation rates) in those index numbers from 1995 to 2005, from 1995 to 2010, and from 1995 to 2015. What is the trend in overall inflation for this product/service?

• Now look up the overall inflation rate (you can use tradingeconomics.com). Analyze the trends in overall inflation over the last five years.

• Has your income kept up with the pace of inflation? How has inflation over the last five years affected you and/or your family? You don't need to state your income. You just need to discuss if it has grown more or less relative to inflation over the past 5 years.

• Now look up the overall inflation rate for another country. Analyze the trends in overall inflation over the last five years.

• Compare and contrast the US and the other country's inflation rates and their trends.

• Discuss how a business manager (such as a general manager, production manager, or human resources manager) might use CPI statistics for pricing decisions, production costs decisions, salary decisions, etc.

• Now look up the GDP for the past 5 years for another country. Analyze the trends in overall GDP over the last 5 years.

• Compare and contrast the US's GDP for the past 5 years from previous assignments with this country's GDP for the past 5 years.

• Discuss how a business manager (such as a general manager, production manager, or human resources manager) might use GDP statistics to determine the overall health of the economy and the impact on sales/demand for its produt. Cite a minimum of three scholarly, peer-reviewed references. The textbook is a required reference and must be cited where used.

Format your presentation consistent with APA guidelines.