Chapter 13, Student Web Activities, Economics Today and Tomorrow, Texas Edition, Glencoe, 2003

Social Studies, Economics Today and Tomorrow, Texas Edition

Chapter 13: Measuring the Economy's Performance
"Measuring Your State's Economy"

Introduction
The Bureau of Economic Analysis, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, interprets a huge volume of data to draw an accurate picture of the U.S. economy. The BEA's regional economic accounts provide estimates, analyses, and projections of personal income, population, and employment for regions, states, metropolitan areas, and counties. In addition, the BEA prepares estimates of gross state product—the total dollar value of all final goods, services, and structures produced in one year within a state's borders. Visit the BEA's Web site to find the economic figures for your area and state.

Destination Title: Bureau of Economic Analysis Web site

Note: Clicking on the link above will launch a new browser window.
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Directions
Start at the Bureau of Economic Analysis Web site.

Under the "Regional economic data" topic, click on the "Gross state product" link.

Select your state from the menu in Step 2. Select All Industries in Step 3 and click on the "Click Here" button.

Read through the site, taking notes as you go. You may click on other topics in this site such as "About BEA" and "Annual state personal income" to complete your research.

Using the information you gathered from this site, answer the following questions.

1. What was the latest total gross state product?

2. By what percent did the economy expand or decrease compared to the previous year?

3. What industry contributed the most to the GSP? Which industry contributed the least?

4. How do the figures federal, state, and local governments compare to private industry?

5. From the report on the gross state product, record the figures for the following industries: manufacturing durable goods, manufacturing nondurable goods, transportation and utilities, wholesale trade, retail trade, private industries, construction, services, government, and agriculture. Find the percentage that each of these industries represents in your state's gross state product. Whatever percentage is left unaccounted for, label "other." Create a circle graph using the figures from these eleven topics.