The Economy
We produce and compile research and data on the overall economy, banking and financial markets. Our goal is to help financial institutions operate in a safe manner and support a robust U.S. financial system.
Working Paper
The Treasury General Account and the Fed’s Balance Sheet
WP 26-48 – Changes in the Treasury’s cash management practices after the COVID pandemic increased the Fed’s balance sheet by as much as 2 percentage points of nominal GDP, including the larger buffer required to maintain ample reserve levels.
Working Paper
A Unified Framework for Transparent Quasi-Experimental Research
WP 26-47 – This paper develops a framework that allows researchers to describe a wide class of quasi-experimental treatment effect estimates using direct analogs of the features that make a randomized controlled trial transparent.
Research
Our Research Department's high-quality academic and original research supports the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and the Bank's leadership as they address economic, finance, and public policy issues.
Aruoba-Diebold-Scotti Business Conditions Index
16 Oct ’26
An index designed to track real business conditions at high observation frequency
Working Paper
The Costs of Access: Freeway Disamenities Across U.S. Cities
WP 26-46 – We construct city-level measures of freeway disamenities and examine their association with metropolitan growth.
COVID-19
COVID-19 and the Philadelphia Fed
Get the Philadelphia Fed’s latest information, resources, and research on the coronavirus pandemic's impact on businesses, households, and communities.
Event
Oct
9-10
2026
2026 Conference on Real-Time Data Analysis, Methods, and Applications
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia
Article
Are Conventional U.S. Manufacturing Productivity Statistics Understating Productivity Growth?
29 Sep ’26
Research in Focus — Enghin Atalay of the Philadelphia Fed and his coauthors adjusted manufacturing total factor productivity statistics using consumer prices to account for product quality improvements.
Working Paper
A Quantitative Model of Banking Industry Dynamics
WP 26-45 – We develop a simple model of banking industry dynamics to study the relation between market structure and financial stability.
Research
Research Assistant Opportunities for College Graduates
Working as a research assistant at the Philadelphia Fed is a rewarding experience, whichever career path you ultimately choose to pursue.