National Bureau of Economic Research is a private nonprofit corporation that conducts research on economic issues. It provides universities, professional associations, corporations, and the United States government with information and objective analyses of economic problems. The bureau is not affiliated with any university or government agency, or with any other organization.
The bureau is perhaps best known for its studies of business cycles, the rises and falls in economic activity. For example, it determines when U.S. recessions (periods of reduced economic activity) begin and end. The bureau also researches such matters as international trade, taxation, investment, and labor markets. Other projects deal with private pensions and social security, and with the historical development of the economy.
Researchers at the bureau have developed important statistical methods now used to measure economic performance. For example, they devised ways to estimate national income and studied the rate of capital formation (growth in the stock of machinery, buildings, and other productive goods). Business people, economists, and government officials use these figures to determine economic conditions and to plan for the future.
The National Bureau of Economic Research was founded in 1920. The American economist Wesley C. Mitchell served as its first director from 1920 to 1945. The bureau is governed by a board of directors, which includes industrial leaders, bankers, financial experts, university economists, and accountants. The bureau’s offices are in Cambridge, Massachusetts; New York City; and Stanford, California.
