Bureau of Labor Statistics

What is the BLS?: The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is the research arm of the Department of Labor.

What the BLS Does: The BLS collects, analyzes and reports on employment and price statistics. Some of the most-watched reports are those on Employment, Unemployment, Productivity, Consumer Price Index, and the Producer Price Index.

How the BLS Affects the U.S. Economy: The BLS reports can determine whether Wall Street will have an up or a down day. The information is also used by the Federal Reserve to determine its monetary policy.

How the BLS Affects You: Each BLS press release directly impacts your portfolio that day. Therefore, it is in your best interest to be aware of the economic trends reported by the BLS. The best way is to sign up for their free email newsletter. There are 25 reports available, but you probably only need three:

1. Consumer Price Index,
2. Employment Situation (includes unemployment), and
3. Producer Price Index

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