The Impact of Economic Data on Financial Markets

Day One

Understanding the Data

General data Issues

• Why the data matters
• Data collection techniques
• Different types of sampling errors
• The statistical bottom line

Relative indicator importance

• What makes a good indicator
• Different types of indicator
• Indicator rankings

Market reaction functions

• Consensus economics: measuring market expectations
• How markets react

Economic Indicators in detail

• Key market moving statistics
• Soft data
• Other indicators

Behind and beyond the headline

• Actual versus underlying
• Seasonality
• Revisions

Exercises

 Day Two

Policies, Perspectives and Projections

Using current data to forecast the future

• Higher frequency to lower frequency
• Medium-term pointers
• Cyclical indicators

Economic policy and market behaviour

• Fiscal policy
• Monetary policy
• Unconventional monetary policy

Economic policy perspectives

• Interpreting the policymakers
• Using official forecasts

The global economic crisis

• Causes
• Recent developments
• Policy responses
• Exit strategies

Economic forecasts

• Current forecasts
• Forecast risks

Exercises