Wal-Mart Economic Indicators
Marita Sanders
Wal-Mart Economic Indicators
November 14, 2010
According to About.com (2010), economic indicators are economic statistics that indicate how well the economy is doing and how well the economy will do in the future. Economic indicators can range from unemployment to the inflation rate. Economic indicators are not the same across the board, and will vary from industry to industry and company to company. Although Wal-Mart is a very successful company, there are still many areas of improvement they need to consider. The problem a lot of companies make is that once they reach a certain revenue dollar amount they feel they have arrived. Although having increasing revenues consistently is key to success, there are many other factors that measure a company’s success. There are six major economic indicators that are of particular relevance to Wal-Mart. Those six economic indicators are consumer price index, employment cost index, employment situation, product price index, productivity and costs and U.S. import and export price indexes. These economic indicators are their statistics are vital to the successful operation of a business. The consumer price index (CPI) is considered the most important measure of inflation. It also compares a fixed list of goods and services to a base period. The CPI is a major economic indicator for Wal-Mart because it measures inflation. Whether the economy is experiencing inflation or not is crucial for Wal-Mart as it relates to pricing and availability of products. Also, being able to compare good and services to a base period is a great way for Wal-Mart to see how their products performed in a certain period. The employment cost index (ECI), is a quarterly economic series detailing the changes in the costs of labor for businesses in the U.S. economy. EPI shows whether employment cost changes are rising or falling. ECI is crucial to Wal-Mart because it details labor cost changes. This is important
Wal-Mart Economic Indicators
November 14, 2010
According to About.com (2010), economic indicators are economic statistics that indicate how well the economy is doing and how well the economy will do in the future. Economic indicators can range from unemployment to the inflation rate. Economic indicators are not the same across the board, and will vary from industry to industry and company to company. Although Wal-Mart is a very successful company, there are still many areas of improvement they need to consider. The problem a lot of companies make is that once they reach a certain revenue dollar amount they feel they have arrived. Although having increasing revenues consistently is key to success, there are many other factors that measure a company’s success. There are six major economic indicators that are of particular relevance to Wal-Mart. Those six economic indicators are consumer price index, employment cost index, employment situation, product price index, productivity and costs and U.S. import and export price indexes. These economic indicators are their statistics are vital to the successful operation of a business. The consumer price index (CPI) is considered the most important measure of inflation. It also compares a fixed list of goods and services to a base period. The CPI is a major economic indicator for Wal-Mart because it measures inflation. Whether the economy is experiencing inflation or not is crucial for Wal-Mart as it relates to pricing and availability of products. Also, being able to compare good and services to a base period is a great way for Wal-Mart to see how their products performed in a certain period. The employment cost index (ECI), is a quarterly economic series detailing the changes in the costs of labor for businesses in the U.S. economy. EPI shows whether employment cost changes are rising or falling. ECI is crucial to Wal-Mart because it details labor cost changes. This is important
References: About Online. Retrieved November 17, 2010 http://economics.about.com/cs/businesscycles/a/economic_ind.htm