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Economics

Handbooks & References

Book resources for understanding economic indicators, terms, and figures.

Statistical Methods

When trying to combine long-time series from multiple data sources, users need to learn that different government agencies may use different data collection and analysis methods, leading to differences between similar labeled data collected by different agencies.

So, it is essential to consult the source's documentation and look for anything about "methodology." 

  • Handbook of Methods - published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), including details about BLS's statistical concepts, definitions, sources, methods, and procedures.(Also in print: L 2.3:2490

Economic Data Sources

Library databases containing data and statistics for Economics, Accounting, and Business.

Provides the United States Government’s open data.

IPUMS provides social and economic data, including census, the US Current Population Survey, health, and education. IPUMS integration and documentation makes it easy to study change, conduct comparative research, merge information across data types, and analyze individuals within family and community contexts.

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) provides a variety of public-use datasets on economic, demographic, enterprise, and social science topics.

Provides a variety of financial data.

Provides data sources from the American Economic Association (AEA), including US Macroeconomic Data, other US data (i.e., individual-level data on income, employment, health, etc.), and international data.

  • Statistical abstract of the United States (print journal)

Call Number/Locations

  • Statistical abstract of the United States (Online: United States. Bureau of the Census)

1878-1994, available online

Financial Data

  • Bloomberg Terminal (Bloomberg Professional)

With Bloomberg terminals, finance and business professionals can access real-time financial data on publicly traded and private companies. Queens College School of Business supports access to Bloomberg Terminals.

  • Wharton Research Data Services (WRDS):

WRDS is a data portal providing access to datasets from various providers covering finance,  accounting,  economics, management, marketing, banking, insurance, and more. Queens College School of  Business supports access to WRDS.