Research Guides: Business Research (Open Access and Free Resources): Economic Surveys and Indices

Economic Surveys from the U.S. Census Bureau

E-Commerce Statistics
Find statistics about e-commerce from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Annual Capital Expenditures Survey (ACES)
The Annual Capital Expenditures Survey (ACES) provides data on capital spending for new and used structures and equipment by U.S. nonfarm businesses with and without employees.
Statistics of U.S. Businesses (SUSB)
SUSB is an annual series that provides national and subnational data on the distribution of economic data by enterprise size and industry.
Survey of Business Owners and Self-Employed Persons (SBO)
The Survey of Business Owners (SBO) provides the only comprehensive, regularly collected source of information on selected economic and demographic characteristics for businesses and business owners by gender, ethnicity, race, and veteran status.

The U.S. Census Bureau conducts more than 130 surveys each year, for a full list click here.

Bureau of Economic Analysis
BEA produces economic accounts statistics that enable government and business decision-makers, researchers, and the American public to follow and understand the performance of the nation's economy. To do this, BEA collects source data, conducts research and analysis, develops and implements estimation methodologies, and disseminates statistics to the public.
Global Consumption Database
Search for data on household consumption patterns in developing countries. From the World Bank.
Innovation in American Regions
The latest research on innovation and rural development available to economic developers and other local decision makers in an easy-to-use format. Data may be used in both rural and urban regions.

Consumer Price Index
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. Indexes are available for the U.S. and various geographic areas. Average price data for select utility, automotive fuel, and food items are also available.
Import/Export Price Indexes
The International Price Program (IPP) produces Import/Export Price Indexes (MXP) containing data on changes in the prices of nonmilitary goods and services traded between the U.S. and the rest of the world.
Producer Price Index
The Producer Price Index (PPI) program measures the average change over time in the selling prices received by domestic producers for their output. The prices included in the PPI are from the first commercial transaction for many products and some services.