wk3 lasa michael smith

Inflation is a measure of how prices have changed over time.  If  prices are changing due to inflation, each dollar spent will buy less.
In order to answer the questions below, go to the following website:  http://www.bls.gov/cpi/

Questions:

1.  What is inflation? What are the causes of inflation?  Is inflation  desirable and what can be done to control inflation in a market economy?
2. What is the Consumer Price Index (CPI)?  How has the CPI behaved  since the year 2000?  What have been the causes of these changes? In  your response, include a graph of the CPI for this period and cite your  source.
3. What is the Producer Price Index (PPI)?  How has the PPI behaved  since the year 2000?  What have been the causes of these changes? In  your response, include a graph of the PPI for this period and cite your  source.
4. What is the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE)?  How has the Survey  behaved since the year 2000?  What have been the causes of these  changes? In your response, include a graph of the CE for this period and  cite your source.
5. What do the measures above tell us about consumer behavior?  Have  incomes changed enough to offset the inflation since 2000?  What can we  predict about future inflation?
6. What are the implications of these measures for government economic policies?