Book review: Bernard Baumohl's 'The Secrets of Economic Indicators'

Can't tell a leading from a lagging economic indicator to save your life? Don't understand why people get so excited about a book whose cover is, after all, beige? Want to know the latest information on business confidence in Japan but don't know who to ask? Bernard Baumohl's The Secrets of Economic Indicators: Hidden Clues to Future Economic Trends and Investment Opportunities is the book for you.

Surprisingly accessible, written not at all in the style of "the dismal science," Secrets of Economic Indicators provides a survey of the most influential economic indicators for both domestic and major international markets, including Germany, Japan, China, India and Brazil.

For the U.S., economic indicators are organized topically into categories covering employment, consumer spending, national outputs, housing and construction, the Federal Reserve, foreign trade and prices. Each category contains numerous entries for relevant economic indicators. As an example of a national output indicator, Baumohl includes an entry for Durable Goods Orders. This entry lists other names for the economic indicator, its relationship to overall market activity, a website where the latest information is available, the schedule for regular releases and how often, as well as what agency or department of the government is responsible for providing the information. Baumohl also provides a narrative description of the indicator, why it is important, how the indicator is computed based on what information, and what the last few figures have been for the indicator, organized in handy chart format.

Entries for economic indicators that are leading, as distinct from lagging, include a section on how this indicator provides clues for shorter and longer term economic activity, a very helpful piece of information for all types of investors.