Macroeconomics Research Project

Instructions:

This research paper is divided among seven separate
questions. Answer each question
separately, but compile your answers into one document. Submit the
answers to these questions when you have completed and assembled all the
questions. Include your name and course number on your paper.

Each question asks you to visit at least one web
site. Links are given as first-choice suggestions. If the exact link does not get you the answer
you need, continue with the question by searching for the updated link, or an
equivalent site. Although one link is
given, you may need to do a little investigation on your own to completely
answer the question. Make sure to cite all sources that you use.
You may also use .com/resdoc/p04_c08_o.html”>MLA style.

(1) Visit the website of the Federal Trade
Commission .ftc.gov/”>www.ftc.gov. Go to the section on
consumer protection and summarize the work of the seven divisions involved in
consumer protection. Which do you think is the most important and why?

(2) Visit both the Republicans’ http://www.rnc.org/ and the Democrats’ http://www.democrats.org/ websites. Identify an
economic issue that both parties address, and compare and contrast their views
on that issue. Generally speaking, how much of the disagreement is based on
normative economics compared to positive economics? Give an example of loaded
terminology from each site.

(3) Go to the Department of commerce website, .commerce.gov/”>www.commerce.gov . Under the Economic
indicators tab go to the section on US international trade in goods and
services. For the August report review the balance of trade data to determine
whether it was favorable or unfavorable. What were the reasons for the result?

(4) Go to the Bureau of Economic Analysis website
at .bea.gov/”>www.bea.gov. Review the data for the
second quarter of 2012 and summarize the reasons given for the variations
between the first and second quarter 2012.

(5) Go to the website of the Bureau of Labor
statistics .bls.gov/”>www.bls.gov. Summarize the July
2012 employment statistics making sure you identify the July national
unemployment rate and compare it with the 2011 data. Identify the three states
with the highest increases in employment and unemployment in the report. What
do you consider the main causes?

(6) Go to the website of the US Treasury .treasury.gov/”>www.treasury.gov . Summarize the mission
and the role of the Treasury. In the section on economic data identify the
number of housing starts, inflation rate, and the price per barrel for oil for
July 2012.

(7) Visit the Office of Management and Budget .whitehouse.gov/”>www.whitehouse.gov . On the issues tab go
to the section on taxes and summarize three recent measures on taxation.