COVID and Official Data Collection – Muddies U.S. economic data as business closures push down response rates

A near total closure of U.S. businesses as authorities try to control the spread of the novel coronavirus could make U.S. economic data unreliable in the coming months and harder to get a clearer picture of the severity of the recession caused by the virus.

A paramedic wheels a patient into an emergency arrival area at Elmhurst Hospital during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Government agencies such as the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) compile data, including the closely watched employment report, by collecting information from businesses and households through in-person and telephone interviews.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story @ Coronavirus muddies U.S. economic data as business closures push down response rates – Reuters