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BEA’s price index for personal consumption expenditur

The first time a friend handed me a Rubik’s Cube I th

When I hear the phrase “personal income,” I think abo

BEA’s supply-use tables may be the unsung hero of eco

Every year, usually in January, I feel absolutely committed to getting a better handle on my finances. All I want to understand—not just at the end of the year, but throughout the year—is exactly what is coming in, what is going out, and what I have left over. Yet I can never seem to calculate these “personal profits,” nor how far I am from the mythical financial goals I’m supposed to have. Maybe my struggles are why I find our estimates of corporate profits at BEA so remarkable.

Here is a fact that may surprise you: The Bureau of Economic Analysis conducts 17 surveys. Yes, the home of gross domestic product, personal consumption expenditure prices, and the current account is also in the big leagues when it comes to running surveys. Not just any surveys, but some of the most unique ones around—collecting information that ranges from direct investment and the activities of multinational enterprises (AMNEs) to U.S. international trade in services.

A blog post from BEA Director Vipin Arora

At BEA we often highlight the comprehensiveness of our statistics. I like to illustrate using the analogy of my favorite Las Vegas dessert buffet. This buffet has an endless variety of desserts: from apple strudel to upside-down cake, there is something for everyone. I would argue our statistics are comprehensive in the same way—there is something for every data user.

A blog post from BEA Director Vipin Arora

One of the best analogies I’ve ever heard for a balance sheet is that it’s like a selfie—it provides a snapshot at a specific point in time. I guess the difference is that the balance sheet provides a summary of assets and liabilities at that point in time—not some picture where I look lost and confused eating a piece of pizza.

A blog post from BEA Director Vipin Arora

Trade—what Adam Smith described as our intrinsic "propensity to truck, barter, and exchange one thing for another"—has helped to make today's world. It is hard to say how long trade has been with us, but certainly since the beginning of recorded history, and likely much longer. One of my favorite examples is beer, which was a very popular beverage in ancient Mesopotamia. As far back as 3500 BCE, there is evidence of Sumerians in the city of Uruk bartering with beer. The Babylonians apparently continued this tradition and brewed many types of beer, grouping them into roughly 20 classifications, which were traded regularly with the Egyptians.

A blog post from BEA Director Vipin Arora

Mackinac Bridge—which connects the Upper and Lower parts of Michigan—is a marvel. So much so that I find it difficult, if not impossible, to appreciate the scale and grandeur of the bridge from just one vantage point. Driving on it, for example, offers a different experience than looking at it from nearby St. Ignace. And the view is awe inspiring from the water. We are looking at the same bridge from each vantage point, yet each gives us a different perspective.