Excel: Economic Analysis and Data Analytics

2h 17mIntermediate2022-08-30

Authors

Michael McDonald

Researcher and Professor of Finance at Fairfield University

Course details

Economics affects us all each day—from issues like inflation to the health of the economy and risk of a recession. In this course, learn how to harness economic data to do economic analysis and forecasting to gain key business insights and analyze market conditions.

Join professor Michael McDonald as he demonstrates how to harness the wealth of information available on the internet to forecast statistics such as industry growth, GDP, and unemployment rates, as well as factors that directly affect your business like property prices, future interest rate hikes, supply chain issues, and more. All you need is the built-in formulas, functions, and calculations of Microsoft Excel. Along the way, get tips on using regression analysis, confidence intervals, and forecasting tools with your company’s key performance indicators (KPIs), building your skill set in data analytics to better meet the needs of your business.

Skills covered

Corporate FinanceSpreadsheetsMicrosoft ExcelFinance and AccountingData AnalysisData ScienceBusiness Analysis and StrategyBusiness Software and ToolsMicrosoftDeep Dive (X:Y)

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Economic forecasting
02 - What you should know before watching this course
03 - Using the exercise files

1. The Basics

04 - Basics of economic analysis
05 - Sources of economic data
06 - Economic forecasting methods
07 - Regression analysis in economics
08 - Predicting values with regressions
09 - Economic forecasting in the research literature

2. Economic Data Analysis

10 - Trend analysis in forecasting
11 - Serial correlation in data
12 - Analyzing results

3. Forecasting Economic Trends

13 - Advanced forecasting methods
14 - Binomial regressions
15 - Fixed effects regressions
16 - Difference in differences analysis
17 - Stata and economic forecasting
18 - Interpreting Stata results

4. Using Economic Forecasts

19 - What do the results mean
20 - Testing accuracy in economic forecasts
21 - Scenario analysis in economics

5. Economic Data

22 - Common economic variables
23 - Lead and lag relationships
24 - Seasonality and data cleaning
25 - Interpreting other's economic forecasts

Conclusion

26 - Projects to try next