Question:
What is the basis of the underlying data of this site — it seems that the bulk of it is relying on US Census data?
Answer:
While the US Census offers a lot of interesting data for "statistics junkies," for a variety of reasons Census data is not a major component of our core product.
However, we organize our data into geographic areas called MSAs (Metropolitan Statistical Areas) — a term often associated with the Census Bureau. An MSA is a designation the U.S. government uses for a region that broadly consists of a city and its suburbs, plus surrounding communities closely linked to it by social and/or economic factors. (MSAs were called Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas from 1959–1983, and Standard Metropolitan Areas before that.)
The government uses the MSA designation to apply uniform, consistent standards to the data its agencies collect and publish; official MSA definitions are issued and periodically revised by the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On the new platform, the Metro geography level in the Precision Market Tracker corresponds to these MSAs — the core level at which our Technical Analysis is most accurate.