Hard data
MacroDefinition
Realized economic numbers: GDP, payrolls, retail sales, industrial production, housing starts. The actual economic activity, measured ex-post.
Lags soft data by 1-3 months. Subject to revisions — initial GDP and payrolls readings are often substantially revised in subsequent reports. Markets nonetheless trade hard-data releases hard.
Lags soft data by 1-3 months. Subject to revisions — initial GDP and payrolls readings are often substantially revised in subsequent reports. Markets nonetheless trade hard-data releases hard.