Macroeconomics (Tako)
Tako serves macro and demographic indicators as structured, cited data: each result is a card carrying the headline value, the underlying rows, and a chart of the series. All tools below live on the Tako MCP server (server name tako). The tool descriptions and every result already carry the card fields, the sources guidance and the zero-card recovery; this skill covers how to shape a macro query, how to check a card against the question, and how to report.
Workflow
- Query as COUNTRY + INDICATOR:
"US CPI inflation", "Japan unemployment rate". Coverage is keyed by country. For a bloc or region, check coverage with tako_available_data before searching: member-country series are far denser, so aggregate them yourself or take the figure from the web results and say so.
- Name the variant when intent is precise. Most indicators exist in several variants with materially different values: headline vs core, seasonally adjusted or not, BLS vs IMF vs OECD-harmonised, U-3 vs U-6, target rate vs effective rate. When you don't know the exact name, call
tako_available_data first, which is free, and search on the name it returns. Level and rate series share a stem: "Core PCE Price Index" is the index level and "Core PCE Price Index (% Change)" is the inflation rate, and a query that says "inflation" can match either, or a CPI series.
- Call
tako_search with the default sources. Web results carry release commentary and cover the gaps in bloc-level data.
- Check the top card against the question with the list below. If a different card is the right one, link its title to its
url and say so.
- Read the value from
description. When the card is exportable and you need more than the headline, tako_contents on its url returns the series.
- Zero cards? Follow the recovery the result states, and keep to two priced searches per question. Empty means not covered, not that the indicator doesn't exist.
- Discovery asks ("what does Tako track for Japan", "which countries are in the G7", "who publishes Japan's data")? Resolve the country with
tako_available_data to get its node id, then call tako_graph_related on it. The first call returns the relation map with counts (metrics, part_of, siblings, sources; members on a bloc node); pass relation to page one and q to filter it, then search on the names it returns.
Checking a card against the question
One indicator name covers many series: providers, methodologies, vintages, levels and rates, and prediction markets on the same quantity. Before quoting, confirm:
- Variant. The title names the variant asked for; several providers' headline numbers can come back together. Don't average them or take the first.
- Vintage, as asked. For a current figure, take the series whose
coverage_end is latest among the matches: discontinued series stay in the graph and an annual series can sit a year behind the monthly one. For a historical period, any series that covers it is valid. Series refresh on different schedules, so don't present two indicators as the same vintage without checking.
- Rate, not level. A "(% Change)" card is a percentage; a bare "Price Index" card is index points. Confirm from the unit in
description.
- Indicator or expectation, as asked. Polymarket cards report what traders expect, not what a statistics agency published, and exist for many macro quantities. Quote one when the question is about expectations, and label it market-implied; otherwise take the published series.
- Country.
nodes names it. Country overview cards sometimes carry no nodes; fall back to the title there.
Comparisons
- Cross-country comparison is built in:
"US vs China inflation" returns a two-series card. For currency-denominated indicators (GDP, wages) the chart plots both currencies on one axis unnormalized; state each currency and convert before comparing.
Output
- One or two lines on the indicator, referencing the chart in prose. Never re-post the image URL: it double-renders the inline chart.
- Source name and
coverage_end date. The roster is wider than FRED, so cite what the card names. Say plainly when a figure is web-sourced.
- One
[Open in Tako](url) link for the card you embedded.
1---2name: tako-macroeconomics3description: Use when the user asks what a country's economic indicator is or was (inflation, CPI, PCE, unemployment, GDP, interest rates, population), compares countries on one, asks which indicators exist for a country or which countries belong to a bloc, or wants a macro chart or briefing. Returns the figures as structured, citation-backed data from Tako (FRED, BLS, OECD, BIS, IMF, World Bank, Census and Polymarket), each with a chart. Country-level indicators only, not company financials or website traffic.4---56# Macroeconomics (Tako)78Tako serves macro and demographic indicators as structured, cited data: each result is a card carrying the headline value, the underlying rows, and a chart of the series. All tools below live on the Tako MCP server (server name `tako`). The tool descriptions and every result already carry the card fields, the `sources` guidance and the zero-card recovery; this skill covers how to shape a macro query, how to check a card against the question, and how to report.910## Workflow11121. **Query as COUNTRY + INDICATOR**: `"US CPI inflation"`, `"Japan unemployment rate"`. Coverage is keyed by country. For a bloc or region, check coverage with `tako_available_data` before searching: member-country series are far denser, so aggregate them yourself or take the figure from the web results and say so.132. **Name the variant when intent is precise.** Most indicators exist in several variants with materially different values: headline vs core, seasonally adjusted or not, BLS vs IMF vs OECD-harmonised, U-3 vs U-6, target rate vs effective rate. When you don't know the exact name, call `tako_available_data` first, which is free, and search on the name it returns. Level and rate series share a stem: "Core PCE Price Index" is the index level and "Core PCE Price Index (% Change)" is the inflation rate, and a query that says "inflation" can match either, or a CPI series.143. **Call `tako_search`** with the default sources. Web results carry release commentary and cover the gaps in bloc-level data.154. **Check the top card against the question** with the list below. If a different card is the right one, link its title to its `url` and say so.165. **Read the value from `description`.** When the card is exportable and you need more than the headline, `tako_contents` on its `url` returns the series.176. **Zero cards?** Follow the recovery the result states, and keep to two priced searches per question. Empty means not covered, not that the indicator doesn't exist.187. **Discovery asks** ("what does Tako track for Japan", "which countries are in the G7", "who publishes Japan's data")? Resolve the country with `tako_available_data` to get its node id, then call `tako_graph_related` on it. The first call returns the relation map with counts (`metrics`, `part_of`, `siblings`, `sources`; `members` on a bloc node); pass `relation` to page one and `q` to filter it, then search on the names it returns.1920## Checking a card against the question2122One indicator name covers many series: providers, methodologies, vintages, levels and rates, and prediction markets on the same quantity. Before quoting, confirm:23241. **Variant.** The title names the variant asked for; several providers' headline numbers can come back together. Don't average them or take the first.252. **Vintage, as asked.** For a current figure, take the series whose `coverage_end` is latest among the matches: discontinued series stay in the graph and an annual series can sit a year behind the monthly one. For a historical period, any series that covers it is valid. Series refresh on different schedules, so don't present two indicators as the same vintage without checking.263. **Rate, not level.** A "(% Change)" card is a percentage; a bare "Price Index" card is index points. Confirm from the unit in `description`.274. **Indicator or expectation, as asked.** Polymarket cards report what traders expect, not what a statistics agency published, and exist for many macro quantities. Quote one when the question is about expectations, and label it market-implied; otherwise take the published series.285. **Country.** `nodes` names it. Country overview cards sometimes carry no nodes; fall back to the title there.2930## Comparisons3132- Cross-country comparison is built in: `"US vs China inflation"` returns a two-series card. For currency-denominated indicators (GDP, wages) the chart plots both currencies on one axis unnormalized; state each currency and convert before comparing.3334## Output35361. One or two lines on the indicator, referencing the chart in prose. Never re-post the image URL: it double-renders the inline chart.372. Source name and `coverage_end` date. The roster is wider than FRED, so cite what the card names. Say plainly when a figure is web-sourced.383. One `[Open in Tako](url)` link for the card you embedded.
TakoData