With many moving parts, economic actors, and competing factors, the economies of countries throughout the world are very complex. What is also very complex is selecting the theorical approach to deal with economic issues. For example, John Maynar Keynes theories focused on consumption, saving, investment, and income. He believed that through appropriate government interventions, economic stability and growth can be managed through influencing these factors. Friedrick Hayek believed that creativity and innovation resulted in growth and prosperity, and too much government intervention was harmful. Regardless of the theoretical approach pursued, many different economic measurements have been developed to gain insight into problems and promote data driven policymaking.

Although most people view the CIA as a spy agency, it is an intelligence agency. In order to understand and effectively interact with the rest of the world, one of the CIA's tasks is to collect economic data on all countries and report the findings in The World Factbook. This information is published openly and can be found on the agency's website:The World Factbook. When you click on the link, you are taken to the landing page - Explore All Countries - where you can find the country of interest. Once you choose a country, you can explore the vast information and data collected. In this assignment, we will be concentrating on specific macroeconomic data. This can be found by scrolling through the site or using the content links. As you explore the economic data, you can get the definition of the measurement by clicking on the header to each measure. In addition to receiving the measurement definition the site provides data by county for that specific measurement. *Notice: When clicking the link above, depending on what browser you are using, a security message may appear asking if you are sure you want to open the link. Rest assured that Bryant & Stratton College has vetted this link, and should you see this pop-up, simply click yes.

Begin the assignment by reviewing the data collected in the United States. After you have explored the website, using the Word template provided, complete the table using the most current data that was collected. As you record the selected data, make sure you indicate the year it was collected by the CIA. After you finish recording the select data on the United States, select a county that you are interested in. After exploring the country of interest, enter the country name in the table and record the data found.

Complete the following table using The World Factbook complied by the CIA. The World Factbook

1. Identify and explain which country has a higher standard of living.
2. Assess which county appears to be the most economically stable.
3. Evaluate which county appears to have the most equal distribution of the country's wealth and prosperity.
4. Describe the challenges that were encountered in collecting the data and comparing the two countries.