International Economic Statistics: A Selected List of Documents

The word “document” in the title has been used to denote publications from our federal government, foreign governments and regional and international organizations. Most readers are aware of the section on comparative international economics, contained in the Statistical Abstract of the United States. It includes information on population, economic growth indicators like GNP, trade, agricultural and industrial production, employment, wages and prices and social indicators like health and literacy in all foreign countries. Brief though the coverage of this section is, it would nevertheless be sufficient to satisfy the needs of most library users. The Abstract also conveniently provides citations to various national and international sources from which the information was gathered. Those who require more detailed data can resort to the many national statistical almanacs and compendiums issued regularly by the statistical departments of the national governments. A prime example of such an almanac would be the Annual Abstract of Statistics relating to the United Kingdom. We may note in this connection that these statistical handbooks are now available in microform. In addition to the statistical offices, the central banks of the countries involved issue regular reports on the monetary and economic situation within the countries. For instance, publications like the West German Monatsbericht contain a wealth of economic data not ordinarily needed by most lay people. Like the central banks, foreign embassies also issue pamphlet type reports aimed at increasing the host country's interest in trade and tourism in their home countries. The annual report entitled Italy: An Economic Profile falls under this category. Finally, there is a wealth of commercially published statistical reviews such as the Economic Intelligence Unit's Quarterly Economic Reviews, containing composite information on national economies. Those interested in learning more about the various available statistical sources may consult excellent bibliographies like the American Statistics Index, Foreign Language Index, Guide to the Basic Statistics in Countries of the ECAFE Region and Sources of European Economic Information. Other similar guides include the following: Statistics Africa‐Sources for Market Research, Statistics America‐Sources for Market Research; Statistics Europe‐Sources for Social, Economic and Market Research; and Statistics Asia and Australasia‐Sources for Market Research. In this survey, we will be concerned only with some recent and most used documents, which provide information on both the United States and foreign countries. We may note here that it is often useful to know about foreign publications containing economic data on the United States, even though there is no scarcity of indigenous sources dealing with domestic issues. The reason for this would be clear if one examines the peculiarity of some of these publications. If one wants to know about the latest consumer price index for the United States, one can get it from the many Bureau of Labor Statistics Reports. There is a problem however in that the BLS still uses the 1967 base year to compute its indices. If one wants a base year later than 1967, one has to resort to non‐American publications like the OECD's Economic Indicators, which use a later base year. Again, data may be available locally on an annual basis and not by quarter. Patrons may solve this problem by looking at some of the statistical documents to be discussed in the course of this survey. Likewise, one can avoid buying expensive foreign data books and almanacs by a judicious use of publications from our federal government. It is also good to know that journals such as the Survey of Current Business and Business Conditions Digest contain issues and sections devoted to comparative economic indicators.