Nowcasting

BańBura, M, Giannone, D and Reichlin, L (2011) Nowcasting. In: The Oxford Handbook of Economic Forecasting. Oxford Handbooks Online . Oxford University Press, Oxford. ISBN 9780195398649

Abstract

This article presents a statistical framework for estimating the current state of the economy (together with the recent past and near future) in a way in which the latest releases of high-frequency economic data can be incorporated, and in a way in which the impact of the latest release on the forecast can be readily assessed (providing a narrative to the changes in the estimate/forecast over time as more information accrues). It is organized as follows. Section 2 defines the problem of nowcasting in general and relates it to the concept of news in macroeconomic data releases. Section 3 explains the details of the approach. Section 4 discusses related literature. Section 5 illustrates the characteristics of the model via an application to the nowcast of GDP and inflation in the euro area. Section 6 discusses issues for further research, while Section 7 concludes.