Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with investment

Financial world post apocalypse

namewithhe1d — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 14:08:46 -0800

What types of job opportunities exist for people with a skill set derived from 3-5 years as an sector trader on the international trading desk for one of the top private equity investment firms? Do those skills translate well into other positions outside of trading? This role was to execute the trades of portfolio managers, research industries and portfolios, trade with sell side brokerage firms as well as electronic algorithms and direct market access.
Product managers? Project managers? Market analysts?

Any ideas are a big help... Kudos if these opportunities exist in the northeast.

Help me not turn into a hopeless Scrooge!

Anonymous — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 07:03:45 -0800

I rule at saving money, and suck at the alternative. Please help this frugal girl learn to spend her hard-earned cash without experiencing fits of anxiety. (I know this question might seem a bit ridiculous, but please bear with me.)

Here goes. Over the past five+ years I've managed to save up a decent chunk of cash. Around $40,000, to be more specific, with another $20,000 in retirement savings. I'm 26, so this means that in comparison to my debt-ridden friends, I'm pretty loaded. I have this money through a combination of factors - my parents helped pay for my post-secondary schooling, I worked hard at a good job for the last few years, have no car/mortgage/children/debt, and am generally pretty frugal in my day-to-day life.

This should be a good thing, but instead it's causing me no end of anxiety. I'm currently living abroad and teaching English part-time (on sabbatical from aforementioned job). I could have afforded to simply take a year off to travel, but for an anxiety-prone person this seemed like a bit too much free time on my hands. So the goal was to have the chance to travel and see more of the world, with some daily structure. And, presumably, to spend some of my savings on much-deserved rewards.

Instead I'm agonizing over price tags - whether to buy a dress I don't desperately need but like well enough, go out for dinner or eat at home, stay at a hostel when I travel or at a hotel, etc. It's a constant battle between being a total cheapo and the desire to spend in a worthwhile way, an inner debate on whether something will ultimately be worth the money, or a source of regret. The times I do buy anything remotely expensive (or even average-priced, vs. on sale), it tends to be a bit random and sometimes forced. $60,000 isn't crazy money, but it's more than a need day-to-day, and although I'm proud to have amassed this much, the result is that money has kind of lost its meaning for me. Prices feel arbitrary, and thus confusing.

None of my friends are in the same boat - most are living lives of necessary rather than voluntary frugality, given our meagre paychecks, which makes me even more cash-conscious. My savings are basically a secret, and I don't have a good reference point for what constitutes healthy spending.

I also have no specific goal in mind for this money. I'd like to do an MA some day, but not yet. I'd like to put a down-payment on a house, but later. I don't want a car or anything else with a sizable price tag. I'd be happy to invest my savings (and $20,000 is already invested), but the rates are so awful right now that it doesn't feel like I'm doing much of anything.

Any advice for how to be a healthy saver AND spender, or similar experiences? I'd really like my money to feel like a blessing, and not a burden. I know I could try making a budget, setting monthly allowances, etc, but in the past I've had a hard time sticking to rigid plans in part because my natural inclination is to spend less, which makes a budget feel like needless work. (I could also try to find wealthier friends, I suppose, but I'm a far cry from a trust fund baby, so I don't know if that would do much to engender healthy habits.)

No throwaway email, but I will send follow-up comments/responses to question to mathowie or jessamyn for posting. Thanks in advance.

Investing Outside of a Tax-Sheltered Account

mahoganyslide — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:46:37 -0800

Is it worth it for a student who makes less than $10,000/year to invest outside of a tax-sheltered account? I recently opened a Roth IRA (with a target date retirement fund). I am a student and make less than $10,000/year so my contributions to the Roth are rather modest. Although I recognize the value of slowly investing towards retirement, I cannot help but feel an itch. The prospect of using my savings to make more money for short-term use is tempting.

I understand the risks involved in investing. However, I've recently been thinking about investing in the Vanguard STAR fund (low minimum amount, no annual fees, moderate risk) outside of a tax-sheltered account. I'm not expecting a high rate of return, just a something that is above the current 1.xx% rate I receive from a high-yield online savings account. I envision myself being a lazy investor who will settle for a lower rate of return and spend valuable time doing the things I love. But, what are the ramifications of doing so?

For example, would it be worth it to invest the minimum amount for the Vanguard STAR fund? What would be the tax ramifications (e.g. capital gains tax...)? Am I being naive in thinking that I can simply invest some money in January, subsequently contribute a small amount over the months, and take out a couple hundred bucks in December?

I am aware that there are other funds out there with higher rates of return than the Vanguard STAR, but I can only afford this particular fund's minimum at the moment. I will definitely reallocate once I've contributed past the minimum of other funds. My question, however, is what can I reasonably expect as a small-fish investor in his early 20's who is still in college?

Protection in a weakening economy

CollectiveMind — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:16:04 -0800

Our deficit and our debt are at record levels, even compared to WWII. Then, the debt was financed internally, not by other countries, so the interest we could pay was lower and the money was recycled in the U.S. Now, the debt and deficit are mostly financed by other countries through bond offerings and the like. And as they grow, those debtor countries will want higher interest rates on repayments, which drains money out of the U.S. Does anyone know of, or can anyone suggest a position to take in-case our national financial fortunes deteriorate slowly? A crash, understandably, wouldn't offer much safety for anyone except the very rich. And I'd expect social unrest would threaten even them at that point. But in general and for the average investor, are there any suggestions for investment or money/asset movement strategies that can protect one in an economy with (a) increasing foreign debt payments in the short term, (b) potential significant interest rate increases in the medium term and (c) lessened national economic influence on the international currency markets in the long term? I just can't seem to find any financial wonk willing to speak plainly on this.

How flexible are mortgage lenders on second properties?

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:09:40 -0800

How flexible is a mortgage lender likely to be on the mortgage for a second home that looks like an investment property? My wife and I live in a home that we purchased in a partnership with my father in law. Since the economy has tanked and taken housing values with it, we are upside down in the loan and would like to negotiate a lower payment until the economy picks back up.

Some details:
The mortgage lists my father in law as the primary owner. This property is the second home he owns but we are supposed to be making the mortgage payments. I was laid off in June and have been working on piecing together enough work to get us back on our feet.

So, how likely is the mortgage lender going to want to help us out in lowering our payments?

Where to find good state-by-state savings statistics?

ejfox — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 07:06:46 -0800

Where can I find solid nationwide savings statistics/data? I am trying to make a map illustrating income & savings in the united states. However, the only data I am finding related to savings is based on measuring the entire United States as one unit. Does anyone know if I could find a state-by-state breakdown?

I have been looking through the "Saving and Investment" section of the BEA website (BEA NIPA Tables) to no avail.

If this information is not available, any advice on how to show a geographic breakdown of income/savings would be appreciated.

Would like to thoroughly understand investment, then forget about it till age 50.

Anonymous — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 21:14:26 -0800

Does the backlash against the Efficient Market Hypothesis have another answer for my lazy-investing needs? So, reading about a 'random walk through Wall Street', etc., I was somewhat convinced, and then the little bit of information that (expert-in-not-much) Tim Ferriss posted from Warren Buffett (invest in a low-cost S&P Index fund) continued to push me in that direction. And, sure, I've put a very relatively small amount of money into an index fund since, but now I'm rethinking whether it makes sense to invest in something else.

Basically, statistically, do mutual funds or any other form of investment, outperform, on average, index funds, whether in a general sense or if you narrow them down to a known property like MorningStar ratings.

Here are some particulars, although they barely pertain to my question. If you've got some sweet investment advice (ha, please no penny stocks), then throw it at me; otherwise I'm really just interested in the 'going thought' amongst casual investors like myself:

- I've got ~$1,000 a month to invest. This is the delta between post-tax income and living costs
- I've got a whole lot in cash reserves to throw at other things gradually. Allocation is currently 90% cash, 8% mutual, %2 index. I know, insane, but, hey, it worked in this whole recession thing.
- No dependents, 22 years old
- No immediate need for returns, won't be in home-buying mode or anything like that (car either) for a while (~8 years?)
- Okay with risk but not flailing. Big fan of science.

What do we do with a 140k inheritance?

veritas — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:39:03 -0800

We live in San Diego. We have 140k in cash after an inheritance, a mobile home we can't afford, crappy jobs, and have never had this much money ever. How do we best invest this money? My husband and I grew up in San Diego - it's expensive, the schools are terrible... but there's lots of parks, great beaches, and we have good friends here. We're 22+23 - he's in college double time for massage therapy and I'm working as an admin/personal assistant. Right now, we're the usual poor college students - I pull in about 20k a year after taxes.

The Good: We have no debt except for his school which is a $400 a month payment debited from our account. There's 8k left on his school. We're both healthy, have a huge mobile home that was also left to us, no kids. We used part of the money to get a reliable car, so that's not a problem.

The Bad: We live in one of the worst neighborhoods in town, paying $700-900 space rent + utilities on the mobile home. We both have to drive about an hour each way for work/school. We have no health insurance, and after bringing all our debts to the bare minimum, we're still in the hole 600 every month. We have someone moving into the extra bedroom soon, but that will only let us break even. We doubt we'll be able to sell the house, because there's a dozen others for sale that haven't sold, including one across from us for 29k, which is cheaper than some cars.

Our options, so far, seem to be buy a house in a crappy/still far away area (El Cajon, Lakeside, City Heights) which would use up all our saved up money, or rent a place (presumably prepaying the rent, because we just don't have credit histories), get a second car, and invest the rest in retirement/savings and making our lives better (buying clothes for once in our lives, a second car). I checked some of the other inheritance posts, but none quite dealt with this large a sum.

Hot new three-way, with load

Clyde Mnestra — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 08:12:09 -0800

Choice of retirement plans: TIAA-CREF, Vanguard, Fidelity? Mattress? My university has changed its retirements benefits scheme, such that we can elect between TIAA-CREF, Vanguard, or Fidelity for our 401(a) and 403(b). The rollout of information, particularly anything that might allow comparative analysis, has been abysmal; basically, we can explore via Fidelity (which apparently serves as an intermediary, or service provider, regardless of where we sink the money) or by making individual appointments with representatives of one of the three funds.

I have had had poor customer service experiences with TIAA-CREF, but then again, I don't know what Fidelity or Vanguard would be like to deal with in this capacity, nor do I know much about their range of retirement products. Anyone been through this experience, or know of particularly good resources for helping to make a decision? Thanks very much.

P.S. I am aware of this, but it is now somewhat dated.

Use cash to start a business or for a down payment on a home.

mintchip — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:40:50 -0800

Use cash to start a business or for a down payment on a home. I have been interested in having my own business. I have read business magazines for years and have even had a couple of small service-based businesses that I ran part time. No big bucks there but a rewarding experience.

Recently I've been considering trying to start a business for real. I have a small sum of cash (between 10-20k) I've been slowly saving for a home down payment.

It's a tough choice. Since I need a home to live in, buying one would mean an investment in my future and security. However, chances are that I won't get rich working for a private company. In fact, it's quite hard to get ahead nowadays with most of the good middle management positions gone. Meanwhile, most of the people I've known who did quite well for themselves did it by owning their own business.

I'm not saying it's easy. I'm just thinking that owning a business seems like my best shot at getting ahead, and it also happens to be a genuine interest of mine. At the same time, starting a business is a huge risk (I think it's something like 4 out of 5 fail within 5 years) and I could lose the money as well as a lot of time and energy.

I believe I have many of the qualities that would contribute to success in business. But it's hard for me to know if I have all of them.

What's your take? How have those of you who have been in a similar position weighed the pros and cons of such a decision.

tips for a first time aparment building buyer

zeoslap — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 11:48:37 -0800

What do you wish you'd known before buying your first apartment building? We are in the early stages of thinking about purchasing an apartment building as an investment property, so just looking for some pointers from any MeFites who have gone through the same process.

Palm Springs VRBO

escher — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:36:39 -0800

I'm considering buying a place in Palm Springs as an investment property. I'm planning to get a property manager and put it into a VRBO type system and timeshare the place out. Is there a resource for gathering the info to research this? Specifically, I'm thinking of how to find out how often i can expect to get as income to cover the mortgage. I can find out comparative rental rates for the places i'm looking to buy, so price isn't the question really but it's more of how many nights per month (or per season) does a place in palm springs get rented? Sure, some have online booking and i can use the "available dates" to gather when things are booked, but who knows how many of those cancel. As you can see, I feel like i'm grasping at straws here, if you have any suggestions that would be great.

Investment habits for a college student?

Ricket — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:13:43 -0800

What are the best investment habits for a college student with decent income to get into, in order to maximize yield in 3 years? I am going into my sophomore year of college.

I recently opened an Orange Savings account with ING Direct and set up an automatic transfer of $30/week into it. It was what I felt safe with at the time. However, while I am glad that it's putting the money somewhere that I don't regularly see it or contemplate withdrawing it, I'd like to know if there are other better options. If my math is correct, the savings account, in the course of three years, will gain around $100 from interest, and I feel like there are better ways to invest my money out there that I just don't know about.

I don't know much about the stock market, but I do have a Scottrade account. I used it to invest quite a bit of money a couple years ago into a penny stock which dropped significantly; but I still have faith in it, and I have no need to withdraw, so I am leaving it to see what happens (rather than taking a significant loss by pulling out). However, this didn't completely scare me away; I just want to be sure, next time, that I do something MUCH less risky and something more universally accepted as a good investment practice, not 'gambling', and that I know when to stop or when to pull out before I lose too much again.

I've heard terms such as mutual fund, index fund, S&P 500, money market... I don't know what any of these are, and I've also heard that some things require minimum deposits. The largest minimum deposit I would be able to make would probably be around $2000, and I'd really like to know that my money will be safe if I do that.

Also, bonds and CDs... Are there any that last only 3 years? I'm not particularly sure what they are either.

So, as you can see, I probably need to take a course on investment, maybe in the spring semester, but for now I feel like I have too much money just sitting in my savings account doing nothing, not even collect a significant amount of interest. My last interest payment was $0.06. What tips can you give me?

And as I've said, I'm hoping for something that I can take out in 3 years, around the time that I graduate, though I'll also take long-term investment tips. And something automatic (on a regular schedule) would be nice! I like the idea of my accounts transferring and saving my money for me, because I know I would neglect to keep it up. Anything in my checking and savings account is fair game for spending, and being a computer science student, I am always drooling over the latest technology.

Thank you!

Investing for kid's future

Blackwatch — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 04:59:35 -0800

UK finance question: Just become a dad. What's the most beneficial way to invest a small four-figure lump sum, plus all of my child's Child Benefit for the next 18 years? Want money to earn as much as possible, with the hope it'll pay for his education in 18 years' time.
Please keep answers simple - I'm new to this game!

Thanks a lot.

We look good on paper. Or do we?

Sublimity — Thu, 28 May 2009 23:10:34 -0800

Any mortgage professionals in the house? I have a question about lending standards for small-scale real estate investors. My family is moving across the country this summer. My husband and I have a rental house and a residence in our current city. We are trying to decide whether to sell the house we now reside in, or to keep it and rent it. We'd like to keep it, if possible, but a big consideration is how this small portfolio would impact our ability to buy a house in our new city.

This article describes how lending standards have tightened in recent months when someone buying a house wants to keep their former residence. It sounds like 30% equity is an important threshhold with respect to the kind of cash reserves needed, and whether the bank will count rent monies toward payments on a rental house.

My question to the lenders in the audience is: in a situation like ours, would that 30% pertain to each individual house, or to the entire (small) portfolio?

I understand that You Are Not My Mortgage Broker. I just want to know in general how lenders think about these things.

When both houses are taken together, we're at about 37% equity. Individually, though, the rental is at about 65% and our residence is at about 10%. Conceivably we could do some refinancing to slosh the money around if needed, though I'd prefer not to if it weren't absolutely necessary.

Additional information that may prove relevant: rents would pretty much break even w.r.t. PITI + management fees. We understand that we'd pay for repairs and upkeep out of pocket and don't anticipate that will be a problem.

Thanks in advance for the help.

First-time home buyer seeks help making a good investment

mintchip — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:08:57 -0800

First-time home buyer seeks help making a good investment I am interested in purchasing a short sale property. I am a first time home buyer. I'm hoping to buy an undervalued condo, live there for a few years to build equity, and hopefully trade up in a few years if (when?) prices begin to bounce back. The places I've been looking at would cost approximately the same or slightly less than renting the same type of unit...so my hope is that this is a low-risk proposition since I need somewhere to live anyway.

I am just learning about all of this so I have a lot of questions.

1. How can I tell if a property is undervalued? For example, I recently saw one that sold only a few years ago for approximately twice what I could get it for now. Assuming the inspection is clear, can I reasonably conclude that this short-sale property is undervalued?

2. What do I need to know about purchasing a short sale property? If they are a good value, why aren't more people buying them?

3. How much does the "assessed value" tell you? For example, I looked at one property that will sell for $150k less than last year's assessed value versus one that's only $35k less than the assessed value. In other words, if the sale price is close to the assessed value, am I less likely to make a profit upon resale?

4. I have substantial fixed-rate student loan debt. I can lower my monthly payments by consolidating over a longer repayment term (25 years). However, this will cost me more interest in the long run. What would make a bank look upon me more favorably--lower monthly payments or my attempt to pay it off faster?

5. What are the best resources to learn what I need to know?

$30k: real estate or stocks?

Anonymous — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:58:51 -0800

I will receive $30k (canadian) as an inheritance. I'd like to invest it to start getting some revenue out of it. I have a few questions. My first idea was to buy an apartment building. I live in a countryside region (on the border of being suburb...) that's currently going through the fastest growth of population in the province. I could get a 3 apartments building for around $300k, so I'd have a cashdown of 10% (I have a few thousand saved, but I'd keep it for eventual renovations). Revenues (before expenses and taxes) would be about $24k/year (full occupancy, which isn't a problem). I have time to invest for maintenance and all, so I won't count the hours spent. Could I get a better return just by putting my money in some sort of fund? By the way I would not live in the buidling, but would stay in the rented house I currently occupy.

Another factor to consider is that I would like to buy a house for myself in perhaps 3-4 years, and wondered if having an apartment building help to finance the house, or if I should do it the other way around (get a house, and use that to finance the building, assuming that the house would cost me $200k minus the 30k).

As you can see, this is a little vague, but then I'm really not too sure about what's the best way to make that 30k a long-term investment. Our combined family revenue is about 60k. This is in the beautiful province of Quebec.

So: (1) Assuming I have time and willingness, is buying a property to rent a better investment--ie. pays more (for long-term revenue) than a typical fund for $30k?
(1) which one should I buy first, personal house of apartment building?

I hope there are enough infos!

How should I invest in mutual funds?

stevechemist — Wed, 13 May 2009 11:20:30 -0800

For investing small amounts every month, is a S&P 500 index fund or a tax-free bond fund more beneficial? I know you are not my financial advisor, but I currently have about $200 in SWPIX, a S&P 500 Index fund. I've been doing some research, and found SWNTX, a tax-free bond fund that seems to be doing well (and have a good history). For small amounts of money (what I currently have plus adding an additional $20-40/month) would it be beneficial for me to split between the two funds, move completely to the bond fund, or to stay in the S&P 500? My goal is long term growth.

How do I avoid paying obscene fees to invest in France

12trees — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:18:45 -0800

I am looking to make long-term low maintenance investments (e.g., index funds) in Euros in a tax-optimal way in France (assurance vie or PEA are what I understand are the real alternatives) but am shocked and appalled at the fees charged by French banks and mutual funds. I'd be quite grateful for any suggestions.

What's my best bet in moving a Rollover IRA to another bank/brokerage firm with my negative net worth?

blue andrea — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:36:07 -0800

I need to know what my options are for moving this thing, given that I have a negative net worth. Can I roll it into another brokerage-style Rollover IRA at a brokerage firm, not a bank, and avoid the money laundering law stuff? Or am I relegated to Bank IRAs until I'm out of school debt? Do I suck it up and take the $75/month hit until I can start depositing money again (I don't know when that will be), and hope that the investments make up the difference in the long run? I haven't lost as much as most in my portfolio, and I know I have time to make up the losses, the monthly fee just seems like an unnecessary loss I should be able to avoid. My Rollover IRA (brokerage, not CD/money market) is with Schwab, and is a product of a 401(k) account I had through them ages back that I converted when I left the company. The monthly fee ($75) is waved if you deposit at least $75 into the account every month. When I had a job, and for the past 8 months this wasn't a problem, but money is tighter now. This means that if I keep my account here, I'll be losing $900/year in fees.

My original plan was to move the money into a Rollover IRA at Bank of America, since that's where I keep my other stuff, and they have no-fee brokerage IRAs. However, from reading articles on AskMeFi and elsewhere, a bank sounds like not the best plan. In any case, in investigating the process, I found that the application asked for my net worth; I have a negative net worth because of school loans, and the field only accepts positive numbers. The customer service rep I chatted with online told me that I can't open a brokerage retirement account with a negative net worth because of money laundering laws. He said my best bet was a Bank IRA (CD/money market options).

So what's my best bet?

Company goes public, I go...?

Anonymous — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 14:01:41 -0800

What will it mean for me if my new company goes public? I've just recently started work at an interesting positioning firm. My boss mentioned in passing today that he's planning to take the company public once the economy makes an upswing. Assuming I'm still working here when this happens, what will "going public" mean for me? What type of package should I negotiate for in order to be in the best position when this does happen?

Looking for investment calculator with real historical data

tomwheeler — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 07:27:57 -0800

I'm seeking an online tool that will project the present value of a monthly investment in a given stock, mutual fund or market index. I'm comparing some investments and want to be able to compare their performance over arbitrary date ranges. The closest thing I've found so far are some calculators that calculate compound interest based on periodic investments, but I am looking for something which uses actual historic market data.

The question I want to answer is "if I invested X dollars each month in security Y starting in August 2003, how much money would I have in February 2009?" Of course, I'd like to be able to change those date ranges so that I can see performance through good times and bad.

It would be ideal if this calculator would work for any stock or mutual fund, but even the ability to do it only for a market index (like the S&P 500 or Wilshire 5000) would still be better than nothing.

Oh wise investors please teach me your tricks!

saradarlin — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 20:12:27 -0800

Starting a Canadian Investment Club in Ontario. 10 people will contribute $100 each per month for 5+ years. We are looking to do a stock buy every 1 - 2 months. What do I need to know from a tax standpoint? How should I structure the club (i.e. Incorporation has too many fees)? Also I'd love tips, advice or Canadian specific links from anyone who has done something similar. Google provides great American info but I didn't find stuff for Canucks!

Financial Filter for choosing an investment person

Coyote at the Dog Show — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:35:31 -0800

Financial Filter: Picking a New Financial Advisor and Evaluating Their Plans Mefites, I need your help. I am helping my mom, a sixty-seven year old widow, try to find a new financial advisor and evaluate their plans of action. I am twenty-six, with no background in investing or finance, and I feel overwhelmed.

Here's the back story: In 2001, my estranged much older brother recommended my mom invest with a large investment firm (think Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, etc.) where he, too, had invested his money. My mom, like me, does not have a background in finance, economics, or investing. Since then, she has had four different financial advisors at the firm. Long story short, the last one was the worst because he did the most damage.

My mom is ready to get the hell away from this investment firm and go somewhere else. She and I have already met with a small, two man investment firm as well as a seemingly reputable Edward Jones financial advisor. We asked each firm to draw up a plan of action to help her stabilize her finances and possibly recoup some of her losses.

The problem is: How do you know if someone is reputable and honest? I've used FINRA's BrokerCheck and the SEC to check up on the advisors we are thinking of using. One of them (one of the two advisors at the small, two man firm) has had a customer dispute when, in the past, he worked at Merrill Lynch and reportedly placed a customer in investments that were deemed inappropriate. How do you evaluate a financial advisor beyond the checklists that the SEC, FINRA, and others recommend? How do you evaluate their plan of action without going to yet another fianancial professional? I know there's no simple magic answer, but maybe some of you have advice that can help us. What worked when you picked your advisor/broker?

I'm scared we'll end up in the same situation and I'm trying to avoid that at all costs. My mom has worked incredibly hard her entire life to scrape together what she has and I don't want her life savings to disappear because of someone else's greed. Her friends keep their money in bank CDs or under their mattresses, so there isn't anyone else we know to ask.

We have meetings with the two new firms this weekend. Thanks in advance.

Economic Information about Australia (GDP and its components)

AZNsupermarket — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 20:43:01 -0800

I'm taking a introductory level macroeconomics course in college. In it, you need to collect a whole bunch of data about a single country (I chose Australia). I got almost all the information I need, but I'm stumped on one small part of it. I need to find Australia's "real GDP" or "GNP" if "Real GDP" is not available. I also need to find the values of its main components: C, I, G, X, M

C = private consumption
I = private investment
G = government expenditure
X = exports of goods and services
M = imports of goods and services

Any help pointing me to the correct site with this information on it would be appreciated!

-Thanks!