[algernonpj]

A bunch of other numbers came out along with the weekly jobless claims. I’ve been wondering for a while if the admin cooks the jobless figs. Now I’m wondering about the accuracy of those other numbers as well.

Yes they are. The CPI version that is minus 'core inflation' (food and energy) is used by the FED to evaluate monetary policy. It is also the version often quoted by the media.

In addition the CPI is adjusted lowered using soft metrics such as owner's rent equivalence, quality adjustments, hedonics indices, geometric weighting, substitution effects, intervention analysis.

In turn the real GDP is created using the tamped down CPI. This, along with the fact that the GDP includes government spending, over states the GDP

[algernonpj]

Sorry proof read too fast. I think the heat is shorting out the synapses of my brain today.

Core inflation is the CPI minus food and energy.

Forgot to add:
Corruption of the CPI is important because it is used by the Federal Reserve to justify its money printing policies, to set the interest rate on inflation-adjusted bonds known as TIPS, and by the federal government to calculate cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for the entitlement programs (e.g., Social Security). The more inflation is understated, the higher the inflation-adjusted rate of GDP growth that gets reported. In addition, the CPI influences interest rates, the stock market, and a host of salary and pension negotiations each year

[mewzilla]

Well, CNBC was also doing a happy dance over the trade number. FWIW, if the trade number was accurate, couldn’t it have been the result of a cr@ppy economy? If so, I’d bloody well hold off on the happy dance.