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Consumer Price Index (CPI)
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Consumer Price Index (CPI)
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Diagrams/Data
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Diagrams and Data
Explore further current and historical data for the consumer price index and how it relates to the gross domsetic product, unemployment rate, and 10-Yr. T-Bond Yield.
Current and Historical Data for CPI
Review the current and historical data for the consumer price index (CPI) by month at Economagic.com.
The Consumer Price Index and Real GDP: Annual Percent Change Relative to Same Period Last Year
With this diagram we can compare the rates of economic growth and inflation. While economic policy makers have the objective of promoting higher economic growth and lower inflation rates, economic growth and inflation both tend to rise at the peak of the business cycle, In contrast, inflation rates and economic growth rates tend to decline during recessions. You can see in the diagram that the inflation rate declined during each of the three recessions shown. Through the economic expansion, GDP growth has outstripped inflation, which suggests that Fed policy had been effective in controlling inflation while allowing for maximum economic growth. Although we have come out of the recession of 2001, economic growth remains slow and fears of deflation have arisen as very low interest rates have yet to spark sustained economic growth.
Economagic.com provides a more complete collection of data for the following:
Real GDP I Consumer Price Index
The CPI: Annual Percent Change and the Unemployment Rate: Annual Change, Both Relative to Same Period Last Year
Note that in order to make the data easily comparable on a single chart, the unemployment rate data are expressed in terms of the annual change. Thus if the unemployment rate rose from 4 to 5 percent, the annual change would be 1 percentage point. As is customary, CPI is expressed as annual percent change from the previous year. This diagram enable us to see how the pattern of unemployment and inflation are related to one another. Two key goals of Federal Reserve (Fed) policy are to keep inflation rates and unemployment rates low and stable. Usually the inflation rate and the unemployment rate move in opposite direction from one another during periods of growth and recession in the economy. For example, note that each of the four recessions since 1980 are marked by spikes (sharp increases) in the unemployment rate, and by a decline in the rate of inflation. An adverse supply-side shock, such as a sudden increase in energy prices, could result in both unemployment and inflation rising, an unfortunate circumstance sometimes called "stagflation" last seen during the energy crises of the 1970s. The unemployment rate has been substantially more volatile than the inflation rate since 1980, as the primary target of monetary policy authorities has been maintaining stable and modest inflation rates. You will notice that the unemployment rate spiked upwards during the most recent recession (March-November 2001) at about the same time that the inflation rate dipped slightly. While the unemployment rate has stabilized in the second quarter of 2003, unemployment remains at relatively high levels, and some economists have called the phenomenon a "jobless recovery".
Economagic.com provides a more complete collection of data for the following:
Consumer Price Index I Unemployment Rate
The CPI: Annual Percent Change and 10-Year Treasury Bond Yield: Annual Change, Both Relative to Same Period Last Year
Note that in order to make the data easily comparable on a single chart, the bond yield data are expressed in terms of the annual change. Thus if the bond yield rose from 4 to 5 percent, the annual change would be 1 percentage point. As is customary, CPI is expressed as annual percent change from the previous year. Yields on U.S. Treasury bonds are a clear and direct indicator of inflation expectations. If investors feel that inflation rates are accelerating, they will demand higher yields on their investments in order to maint 10-year Treasury Bond is directly related to the inflation rate; as expected, when the inflation rate rises, so too does the bond yield. An interesting exception occurred in 1995, when the yield rose on inflation expectations that failed to materialize. For the first time in several years bond yields began to rise in mid-2003 in response to the economic recovery, while inflationary pressures remain light.
Economagic.com provides a more complete collection of data for the following:
Consumer Price Index I 10 Year Treasury Bond Yield
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