What it is
A very large and varied economy, led by services and by the spending of its own households. Its currency and its government bonds are used across the world, so its data and its central bank are followed well beyond its borders.
What the economy is known for
- Services lead: finance, technology, healthcare and professional services
- Household spending makes up the greater part of activity, which is why consumer and employment data are read so closely
- A large producer of oil, natural gas and farm produce as well as of manufactured goods
- Deep markets for shares and government debt, in which the rest of the world invests
A description of structure, in words. No size, share or ranking is given: those are figures, and they are read at the statistical offices named below.
Its central bank and mandate
Congress has given the Federal Reserve two goals, often called the dual mandate: as many people in work as the economy can sustain, and stable prices. Policy is set by the Federal Open Market Committee.
Federal Reserve on Central Bank Watch
The policy rate, the last decision and the next meeting are not shown on this site: they are read at the bank’s own publication.
The releases that matter, and who publishes them
- Employment Situation report (Non-Farm Payrolls and the unemployment rate)Published by Bureau of Labor StatisticsExplainer: NFP
- Consumer Price IndexPublished by Bureau of Labor StatisticsExplainer: CPI
- Personal Income and Outlays, with the price index the Federal Reserve’s inflation goal is stated inPublished by Bureau of Economic Analysis
- Gross Domestic ProductPublished by Bureau of Economic AnalysisExplainer: GDP
- Retail salesPublished by US Census BureauExplainer: Retail sales
- ISM Report On Business (manufacturing and services PMI)Published by Institute for Supply ManagementExplainer: PMI
No dates or figures are shown here: each publisher’s own calendar is the authority. The explainers are in Economic Events; a release without a link has no explainer on this site yet.
Its main stock index
S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq-100. Three indices are commonly quoted: a broad one of large companies, an older one of thirty, and one weighted towards technology.
GIO4X lists these indices as index CFDs. The contract and its published conditions are on the instrument page, labelled as indicative.
Its currency
The currency of the United States is the US dollar (USD), issued by the Federal Reserve. GIO4X lists 7 currency pairs that contain it; they are set out on the currency’s profile.
Words worth knowing
A reference page. Educational information, not investment advice or a recommendation to trade. It gives no figure, no ranking and no forecast.