economy in The united states

Requires students to research and apply preliminary economic data to a key indicator of the health of
the US economy. At 8:30 am on Thursday 28 October the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) will
release the advance report on GDP for 3rd quarter 2021. Go to www.bea.gov and read the report.
Using that and other resources, write a short paper explaining the current state of the U.S. economy.
Other resources could include:
• News organizations (The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Yahoo Finance, CNN, etc.) • Television (CNBC, Bloomberg TV, and Fox Business News) • Bank economists (BMO Capital Markets, Wells Fargo, etc.) • Economic Consultants (Haver Analytics, Oxford Economics, Yardeni Research, etc.) • Atlanta Fed GDPNow and Fed Summary of Economic Projections
The websites for these sources are provided in the Economics Websites primer posted on
Blackboard. Most are available as apps. In addition, Blackboard also contains the Guide to Economic
Indicators primer. Students should read pages 33-36 of this Guide as part of the readings. If you have
time, watch CNBC for pre-release commentary by experts, the release of the GDP report, and
subsequent coverage (and commentary by experts).
The paper should investigate and review the state of the economy in the United States. It should
answer several questions: What was the growth rate of the US economy? Did it quicken or slow from
the 2nd quarter? What components of GDP (C, I, G or NX) accounted for most of the growth?
What components of GDP acted as a drag on GDP? What is the prognosis of future (4th quarter and
beyond) growth in real GDP?
This third individual project is due in-class during on Thursday 11 November. The research paper
must be 2-3 pages in length, stapled and formatted in the appropriate style. Make sure you cite your
sources and answer the questions. All written work must be typed/word processed and should
demonstrate thorough research evidenced by 1) logical and coherent data; 2) completeness of
analysis; 3) clarity; 4) meaningful opinions; and 5) neatly organized and presented.
Oral discussion of your topic: None. Grade breakdown:
• 20% – Organization (Is the paper well-written? Other organizational points include spelling,
grammar, clarity and formatting); • 20% – Qualitative research (use of secondary resources); • 20% – Quantitative research (statistics and data cited from BEA report); • 40% – Analysis (Did you connect your research with relevant economic principles? Did you
cover the relevant factors explaining the current economic situation?).
Honesty and integrity are expected of students at Catawba College.
Total points possible: 60 – See also, syllabus. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any
questions.

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