Banking

Interest Rates

Bank Rate Monitor Infobank

Offers interest rates, mortgage rates, news and other information including consumer tips.

Card Web

CARDTRAK contains a survey of credit cards and their interest rates.

Selected Interest Rates FRB H15

Issued weekly by Federal Reserve Board. Shows daily rates for interest/yields on commercial paper, banker's acceptances, CD's, prime rate, US government securities (treasury bills, secondary market, etc.) and corporate bonds.

Foreign Exchange Rates

Currency Converter by Yahoo! Finance

Foreign Exchange Rates, Monthly, FRB G.5 (405)

Provides monthly exchange rates for selected currencies, issued by Federal Reserve Board.

Foreign Exchange Rates, weekly, FRB H.10 (512)

Provides weekly exchange rates for selected currencies, issued by Federal Reserve Board.

Oanda 164 Currency Converter

Currency exchanges rates for 164 different currencies from January 1, 1990 through previous market day.

Federal Reserve Banks

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Home Page

Contains archive of approximately previous 6 months releases as well as current releases. Includes access to FRB Statistical weekly releases H.3; H.4.1; H6, H.8 H.10 and H.15; Monthly releases G.5 G.17 G.19; and Quarterly release Z.1. Includes the Beige Book.

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Home Page

FRB St. Louis operates FRED (Federal Reserve Economic Data), a site which includes economic research papers and other FRB indexes, statistics and series.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Market Rates

Offers Commercial paper rates, and other banking statistics on a timely basis.

Monetary Conversion

How Much is That? Economic History Service

Answers questions of relative value, comparing purchasing power (for U.S. Dollar back to 1665), exchange rates, and other variable between past and today.

The Inflation Calculator

Adjusts any given amount of money for inflation, according to the Consumer Price Index from 1800 to present.

Inflation Calculators

Lists several inflation calculator web sites

Salary Calculator

Use this calculator to compare the cost of living in hundreds of U.S. and international cities.

Additional Resources

California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency (BT&H)

Links to other state departments which are involved in banking and financial affairs, such as:
Department of Corporations
Department of Financial Institutions

Census of Finance and Insurance (1997)

Provides comprehensive statistics on the banking, investment, and insurance industries.

Census of Real Estate and Rental and Leasing (1997)

Provides comprehensive statistics on the , real estate and rental and leasing industries.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

Includes banking news, consumer information, and banking laws and regulation.

International Monetary Fund

Includes publications, reports as well as statistics issued by the International Monetary Fund.

U.S. GSA Consumer Information Center

General Services Administration offers consumer information to a wide range of subjects. Its section on Money includes information on fair credit reporting and debt collection laws, and investing and financial planning.

U.S. Treasury Department

The Treasury Department offers links to many banking and money related agencies, such as:
Bureau of Public Debt
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Financial Management Service
Office of the Controller of the Currency
Office of Thrift Supervision
U.S. Mint

World Bank

Offers publications, proceedings and programs as well as statistics issued by the World Bank.

Companies

Private Companies

Internet 800 Search

Includes toll free telephone number of businesses.

Super Pages

Includes businesses with detailed street location map.

Thomas Register of American Manufacturers

Includes manufacturers in US and in Canada. Searchable by product, company, and brand name.

Public Companies

Annual Reports Library

Provides links to annual reports of many publicly held companies. Includes also annual reports of selected nonprofit organizations.

EDGAR

This official Securities and Exchanges Commission site offers annual reports and 10-K statements of all publicly held companies.

Hoover's Online

Lists both private and public companies. Information includes financial data, and key personnel.

Wall Street Research Net Company Research

Includes publicly held companies in US and Canada.

Check the section on Investment for more sites linking to financial information of the publicly held companies

International Companies

The European Business Directory

Maintained by Euredit, this page serves mainly companies in European communities who wish to trade beyond their national borders. The directory lists 150,000 selected companies from 25 countries.

BizWeb

Lists companies by services and products. Provides links to company's internet site.

Consumer Information

Agencies That Process Complaints Against Businesses and People

List from LAPD of local, state, and national agencies that assist with consumer complaints.

Better Business Bureau

Provides consumer and business guidance and information on dispute resolution.

California Department of Consumer Affairs

Provides information on consumer rights and responsibilities

Consumer Action

Provides consumer tips, advice and the Consumer Assistance Directory.

Consumer Guide

Includes product reviews and information.

Consumer Guides and Protection on USA.gov

Official information, guides, and services from a variety of federal government departments and agencies.

Consumer Reports

Provides product ratings and general consumer information.

Consumer Search

Provides product reviews and information.

Consumer World

Provides information on products, prices and consumer agencies.

Credit Reports Free Annually

Federal Trade Commission site that provides information and a link on how to order your annual free credit reports.

Federal Consumer Information Center

Provides consumer information on numerous topics.

J.D. Power & Associates Marketing Information

Conducts independent and unbiased surveys and research regarding customer satisfaction, product quality and buyer behavior.

Loan Modification Scam Alert

Phone Fraud

Consumer education to help people protect themselves from phone fraud, provided by the Federal Trade Commission.

Recalls.gov

Federal government inter-agency web site providing safety information covering consumer products, motor vehicles, boats, medicine, cosmetics and environmental products.

Industry & Economy

NAICS/SIC Conversion Table

Introduces the industrial numbering system scheduled to replace Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Codes.

Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) System Search

Identifies Standard Industrial Classification codes for industry.

General Industry Statistics

Census Bureau: Economy - Wide Page

Gives national statistics on minority owned businesses, North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) which replaced the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) in 1997. Broad based information on business ownership, financial statistics and research for Business.

County Business Patterns

Provides business statistics by Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code and by county. Beginning in 1998, data are tabulated by industry as in the North American Industry Classification System: United States, 1997 (NAICS). Data for 1997 and years are based on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) System.

Economic Census, Summary of National Statistics

Summary of establishments, sales, payroll and number of employees by SIC
or by industry. Profiles of U.S. economy every 5 years.

How to Find the Latest Business Data

Provides links to a variety of additional data available from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Regional Economic Accounts System

Employment and industry data for county and regional areas.

Statistics By Industry

1. Agriculture

   Census of Agriculture

   Offers agricultural statistics by geographic areas.

   Internet AgriBusiness and AgriEconomics Resources

   Includes commodities, futures and options, cooperative extension reports, statistics, trade agreements.

   USDA: United States Department of Agriculture

   News, general information, and opportunities with the USDA

2. Construction

   Census Bureau: Construction Industry

   Provides many reports on the construction industry published by the Census Bureau.

3. Manufacturing

   Census Bureau: Manufacturing

   Offers census reports on manufacturing industry, including Annual Survey of Manufacturers, Census of Manufactures, Manufactures' Shipments to Federal Agencies, Manufacturing Technology Surveys, and the Survey of Plant Capacity Utilization.

   Current Industrial Reports

   Provides statistical data on commodity production and shipments for approximately 5000 products, accounting for more than 1/3 of all U.S. manufacturing.

4. Mining and Mineral Industries

   California's Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources

   California Department of Conservation's site which offers oil and gas statistics in California.

   California Department of Conservation's Geological Survey

   Offers additional statistics of minerals in California.

   Census of Mineral Industries

   Provides detailed information on products, selected supplied, minerals used, machinery installed and fuels consumed. Geographic Area Series consists of 9 reports covering the US protectorates.

5. Retail and Wholesale Industries

   Census Bureau's Retail & Page

   Includes the Advance Monthly Retail Sales Survey, Monthly Retail Trade Survey, Annual Retail Trade Survey, and Census of Retail Trade as well as Advance Monthly Wholesale Sales survey, Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey, Annual Wholesale Trade Survey, and Census of Wholesale Trade. There are links to related sites.

6. Service Industries

   Census Bureau's Services Page

   Includes links to all the Censuses that involve service industries, eg. Census of Service Industries, Census of Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate, Census of Transportation, Communications, and Utilities, Truck Inventory and Use Survey, Commodity Flow Survey, Motor Freight Transportation and Warehousing Survey, and Annual Survey of Communication Services.

7. Tourism Industries

   California Tourism Research

   Vital visitor statistics & research articles on California tourism industry.

8. Transportation Industries

   Census of Transportation and Warehousing (1997)

   Provides data on passenger and freight transportation, communication services. and electrical, gas, steam, water, or sanitary services to the general public or to business.

   U.S. DOT. Bureau of Transportation Statistics

   Includes Transportation Statistics Annual Report, American Travel Survey and other travel and transportation related statistics.

   U.S. DOT. Office of Airline Information

   Includes statistics of airline industry

9. Utilities

   Federal Communications Commission

   The home page of FCC offers information on auctions, consumer information, rules and regulation, and many other useful information.

   Census of Utilities (1997)

   Includes census information of communications industry as well as sanitation, electricity, gas, and water utilities.

Economic Indicators

Bankruptcy Statistics

Offers statistics of business and personal bankruptcy filings. Includes annual and quarterly statistics for US and major metropolitan statistical areas.

The Beige Book: Current Economic Conditions (2002)

The report, published by by Federal Reserve Board, provides summary of economic conditions by federal reserve district. Includes major economic indicators, and interviews with key businessmen, economists, market experts, and other sources.

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)

Includes many important national, international, and regional economic indicators. Links to many BEA's publications, including Survey of Current Business.

Business Cycle Indicators of the Conference Board

Includes links to many leading economic indicators, consumer confidence index, and other business cycle indicators.

Census Bureau's Economic Briefing Room

Provides current statistics of household income, poverty and other economic indicators.

Consumer Price Indexes

The Bureau of Labor Statistics' official site on consumer price index.

The Inflation Calculator

Offers instant calculation of inflation, based on consumer price index, from 1800 to 1997.

World Economic Indicators

UN Indicators on Income and Economic Activity

Provides basic income statistics of member countries of United Nations.

UN Indicators on Housing

Provides basic housing statistics of member countries of United Nations.

International Trade

Trade Leads and Suppliers

Asian Sources

Includes product suppliers and manufacturers in many Asian countries.

Business Information Service for the Newly Independent States

Trade leads and matchmaker services for companies doing business with former Soviet states.

Central & Eastern Europe Business Information

Companies doing business with Central and Eastern European countries.

Commerce Business Daily & FedBiz Opps

The official source for government contracts and bids is now available on the web. You can get one week free if you register as a guest.

Export Opportunity Hotline, Small Business Administration

Provides export assistance.

Owens Online

Provides trade leads and international credit reports.

Trade Opportunities Program (TOPS)

Provides companies with current sales leads from international firms seeking to buy or represent their products or services. This is a fee based service, but you can get information without subscription for trade leads three months and older.

World Trade Center Association

Provides international trade leads from World Trade Center.

Country Specific: Regulations & Practices

Country Library [TradePort]

Summarize all information you need to know in order to trade with a specific country. Includes each country's demographics, political environment, economic outlook and trends, trade regulations and standards, business travel overview, etc.

Guides to Doing Business

More than 100 Guides to doing business for Countries, States or Provinces compiled by Lex Mundi, an association of independent law firms.

Hong Kong Trade Development Council

Provides access to product suppliers and service providers from Hong Kong and China. Includes information on trade leads, tradeshows, and practical tips for doing business in Hong Kong and in China.

International Business Resources on the WWW

Maintained by the Center for International Business Education and Research of Michigan State University. This site leads to news and magazine articles relating to international trade, and many regional or country specific information sites.

Taiwan Products

Lists manufacturers in Taiwan.

Supporting Services

California State Overseas and Investment Offices

The State of California maintains offices in Hong Kong, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom to promote California products and to assist California exporters locally. You will be able to find the addresses and contact information of these oversea offices at this site. Administers a loan guarantee program for California-based firms with at least one year export experience.

CEDAR's International Trade Site

Maintained by California Economic Diversification And Revitalization (CEDAR), this site offers many valuable links to export guides and regulations, trade leads, international directories, and other resources relevant to international trade such as shipping.

Export.gov

Portal to all export-related assistance and market information offered by the federal government, providing trade leads, free export counseling and help with the export process. Click on “Partner Agencies” to find other links, including the U.S. Commercial Service, which give additional information.

Export-Import Bank of the United States

Assists in export financing of US goods and services by offering direct and intermediary loans to foreign buyers of US exports, working capital and loan guarantees.

Journal of Commerce

The daily journal of trade logistics. The new JOC Week paper edition is located at the Reference Desk in the Business & Economics Department in the Central Library.

SCORE (Small Business Administration)

The SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives Association), is made up of retired, professional business managers from all disciplines of business and government. They volunteer their time to provide free management and business counseling and workshops.

Trade Information Center

Supported by the International Trade Administration, the Trade Information Center is the first stop for information about all federal export assistance programs, as well as country and regional market information.

U. S. Bureau of Industry and Security

Official site of the US Bureau of Export Administration offers information on export regulations and related information on exporting from US.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Provides general information about custom regulations.

U. S. Department of Commerce. International Trade Administration

Provides assistance in researching foreign markets, making business contacts overseas, and promoting products abroad.

International Trade Statistics

Foreign Trade Statistics

Trade statistics issued by U.S. Census Bureau.

ITA. Office of Trade & Economic Analysis

The Office offers Global Data Links, U.S. Foreign Trade Highlights, State Export Data, and many other trade statistics from its site.

Investment

Quick Quotes and Charts

BigCharts

Provides stock quotes, charts and links to stocks, mutual funds and futures traded in all major exchanges. Historical information included. Market reports on each exchange included.

Yahoo! Finance

Provides opening, closing, high, low, volume information, including splits and dividends and foreign currency exchange rates. Historical information downloadable in spreadsheet format. Covers bonds, mutual funds as well as EFTs [Exchange Traded Funds] and indices. Market reports available.

 

Investment Information & Stock Analysis

American Association of Individual Investors

This site gives all sorts of help to the investor. Pages include a glossary of investment terms, building an investment plan from scratch, basic investment principles, techniques for picking stocks, and others.

Hot Links for Traders

Links to sites of interest to the investment trader.

IPO Central

A commercial site that has the latest Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). Includes links to the EDGAR SEC IPO filings and other sites of interest.

Motley Fool

Provides stock quotes, company news, and opinions on publicly traded companies. Graphs and charts are available for most companies. A humorous and insightful approach to investing.

MSN Money

Provides comprehensive investment assistance and financial information about publicly held companies.

Stock and Commodity Exchanges

Chicago Board of Trade

Includes news, quotes, and other marketing information on futures and options trading.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange

Includes news, consumer information (how to choose a broker), and trading information.

NASDAQ Home Page

Home page for the NASDQ network.

New York Stock Exchange Web Site

NYSE's Home Page "is designed as an educational tool for investors, students and teachers. It provides links to a rich diversity of information."

Bonds, Commodities and Mutual Funds

Investing In Bonds

Offers basic information on investing in bonds and how to read bond prices in the daily newspapers.

MorningStar

Offers rating and financial analysis of mutual funds as well as stocks.

World Bank Commodity Price Pinksheets

Commodity prices.

Labor & Employment

Job listings - See Jobs & Career

Employment and Labor Market Statistics

California Labor Market Information

Maintained by California Employment Development Department, this site offers labor market statistics by industry or occupation, and by county.

U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. News Releases

This site has current news releases in a number of areas of interest to labor. It has employment and unemployment, prices and living conditions, productivity and technology, employment projections, and regional news releases.

United Nations: Indicators on Unemployment

Provides unemployment rates for all member countries of the United Nations

Labor Laws & Unions

Americans with Disabilities Act ADA Home Page

Provides links to other sites which cover ADA information, technical assistance, and information hot lines.

California Labor Code & Others

Maintained by California Employment Development Department, this sites offers links to California Business and Professions Code, California Labor Code, and California Unemployment Insurance Code.

Law.Com

Maintained by a law firm, this site provides comprehensive coverage and links to documents and information relating to labor and employment laws.

National Labor Relations Board Decisions

Full text of NLRB decisions.

Salaries and Wages

Employment Standards Administration, Wages and Hour Division

Gives information on the minimum wage, Family and Medical Leave Act, and employee rights.

JobStar Salary Survey

Provides links and descriptions to 150 salary surveys.

Salary Calculator

This calculator can be used to compare the cost of living in hundreds of U.S. and international cities

WageWeb

Provides average salaries for clerical, professional and managerial jobs.

Real Estate

Finding a Home

Homebuyer's Fair

Includes listings for homes available for sale, and links to other useful information relating to home buying.

Homebuilder.com

Includes new home production, floor plans, and real estate market of the U.S. Links to 7,000 home builders' sites.

International Real Estate Directory

Includes real estate listing outside U.S.

Los Angeles Times hosts DataQuick

Gives sales comparisons and latest sale prices for the five county area (Los Angeles County, Orange County, Riverside County, San Bernardino and Ventura Counties).

Mortgage

Quicken Mortgage Home Page

Offers links to everything you need to know about securing a mortgage.

Government Housing Agencies

California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency (BT&H)

Provides links to California state departments regulating real estate industry, including the Department of Real Estate, and Office of Real Estate Appraisers.

U.S. General Services Administration Consumer Information Center: Housing

Maintained by the General Services Administration, this section of the Consumer Information Center offers consumer information on housing and mortgages. It offers links to many booklets available in a wide range of subjects, see the section on Banking for the CIC pamphlets on money and financial services.

U. S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Offers links to consumer information on housing assistance.

General Resources

Building Owners & Managers Association (BOMA)

This site provides information on industry data and expenditure analysis of commercial real estate.

California Association of Realtors

This site provides consumer and industry information for California real estate industry. Its Economics page offers current economic trends and forecast.

MSN Real Estate

Maintained by Microsoft, this site offers a one-stop shopping service for home hunters. Links to neighborhood information, price comparison, mortgage calculations, and property listing.

Realtor.com

Includes home listing, directory of realtors, and links to other useful resources in home buying.

Small Business

Start-Up Information

Be the Boss

Includes links to franchise information.

Entrepreneur Magazine's Small Business Square

Includes everything you need to start and run a business. Lists businesses for sale, and forms for all business activities.

EntreWorld

Includes links to information on starting your business, increasing your business, and supporting entrepreneurship.

Fictitious Business Name Statements (DBA)

Fictitious Business Name Statements (DBA) searches for Los Angeles County provided from Chamber of Commerce Journal site.

Los Angeles Business Solutions

Official city portal for business in Los Angeles.

SBA Franchise Hotlist

Current links to franchise resource sites.

Start-Up Guide for New Businesses in Los Angeles

Prepared by the Library's Business and Economics Department.

Business Plans

Small Business Administration, Business Plan Guide

Includes a step by step tutorial on how to write a business plan.

Bplan.com

Offers hands-on guidance to writing business plans. Includes real plans of companies that gained financing.

General Resources

Digital Commerce Center

Resources in the areas of electronic commerce, Internet advertising, digital asset management, small business development and corporate education.

Small & Home Based Business Links

Offers links to franchise and home based business opportunities.

Small Business Resource Library

A virtual center, designed to complement public library on-site services and resources for people starting or working in small businesses. Created and maintained by a California State Library Grant.

Small Business Advisor

Contains a wide variety of on line information for the entrepreneur and small business owner.

Supporting Organization

Business Assistance Virtual Network (BAVN)

Free service provided by the City of Los Angeles Minority Business Opportunity Committee (MBOC) and the Los Angeles Opportunities & Procurement Services. Contract opportunities, jobs, and permits & licenses information are highlighted.

California Small Business Development Centers

Offers information, referrals, and one-on-one professional business counseling, and regular workshops to small business owners.

CalGOLD

Provides businesses with information on permits and other requirements of California agencies at all levels of government, and links. Searchable by type of business and location.

Small Business Administration

The official home page of Small Business Administration offers assistance, regulatory information, and statistics relating to small businesses.

Valley Economic Development Center

Non-profit business development corporation offers services to small and medium sized business owners, entrepreneurs and members of the communities it serves. It operates and facilitates several programs and projects such as the SBA Women's Business Center and the Historic Downtown Retail Project.

Unclaimed Property

California Unclaimed Property