Consumer Debt
Consumer debt consists of the loans individuals use for personal consumption. This is in contrast with the business or government debt. Examples of consumer debt include credit cards, student loans, auto loans, mortgages, and payday loans. Economists consider consumer debt to be suboptimal because it often has high interest rates. This makes it difficult to eliminate.
Consumer Price Index (CPI)
The Consumer Price Index is an economic gauge of inflation that measures the price of staple goods and services. Every month, the U.S. Department of Labor averages the changes in price to a basket of goods and services. The resulting CPI is a primary tool in determining how people are experiencing inflation.
Market
A market is a place where competing parties meet to buy and sell goods and services. In finance, the market usually refers to an exchange or over-the-counter facility for the trading of securities. For example, the stock market is a place where brokers gather to buy and sell equities and other instruments.
Treasury Bill
A Treasury Bill (T-Bill) is a short-term debt obligation of the United States government. These securities have a maturity period of one year or less and sell at a discount from face value. Given their backing by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, investors generally regard T-Bills as low-risk and secure.
Volatility
Volatility is a measure of risk based on an asset’s price fluctuation over time. Investors and traders calculate a security or index’s volatility according to its standard deviation of returns. Generally, the higher the volatility, the riskier the asset.
