Gross domestic product (GDP) is the total monetary or market value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country's borders in a specific time period. As a broad measure of overall domestic production, it functions as a comprehensive scorecard of a given country’s economic health.
Though GDP is typically calculated on an annual basis, it is sometimes calculated on a quarterly basis as well. In the U.S., for example, the government releases an annualized GDP estimate for each fiscal quarter and also for the calendar year. The individual data sets included in this report are given in real terms, so the data is adjusted for price changes and is, therefore, net of inflation. In the U.S., the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) calculates the GDP using data ascertained through surveys of retailers, manufacturers, and builders, and by looking at trade flows.
Understanding Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
The calculation of a country's GDP encompasses all private and public consumption, government outlays, investments, additions to private inventories, paid-in construction costs, and the foreign balance of trade. (Exports are added to the value and imports are subtracted).
Of all the components that make up a country's GDP, the foreign balance of trade is especially important. The GDP of a country tends to increase when the total value of goods and services that domestic producers sell to foreign countries exceeds the total value of foreign goods and services that domestic consumers buy. When this situation occurs, a country is said to have a trade surplus. If the opposite situation occurs–if the amount that domestic consumers spend on foreign products is greater than the total sum of what domestic producers are able to sell to foreign consumers–it is called a trade deficit. In this situation, the GDP of a country tends to decrease.
Nominal GDP
Nominal GDP is an assessment of economic production in an economy that includes current prices in its calculation. In other words, it doesn't strip out inflation or the pace of rising prices, which can inflate the growth figure. All goods and services counted in nominal GDP are valued at the prices that are actually sold for in that year. Nominal GDP is evaluated in either the local currency or in U.S. dollars at currency market exchange rates in order to compare countries' GDP in purely financial terms.
Nominal GDP is used when comparing different quarters of output within the same year. When comparing the GDP of two or more years, real GDP is used. This is because, in effect, the removal of the influence of inflation allows the comparison of the different years to focus solely on volume.
Real GDP
Real GDP is an inflation-adjusted measure that reflects the quantity of goods and services produced by an economy in a given year, with prices held constant from year to year in order to separate out the impact of inflation or deflation from the trend in output over time. Since GDP is based on the monetary value of goods and services, it is subject to inflation. Rising prices will tend to increase a country's GDP, but this does not necessarily reflect any change in the quantity or quality of goods and services produced. Thus, by looking just at an economy’s nominal GDP, it can be difficult to tell whether the figure has risen as a result of a real expansion in production, or simply because prices rose.
Economists use a process that adjusts for inflation to arrive at an economy’s real GDP. By adjusting the output in any given year for the price levels that prevailed in a reference year, called the base year, economists can adjust for inflation's impact. This way, it is possible to compare a country’s GDP from one year to another and see if there is any real growth.
GDP Per Capita
GDP per capita is a measurement of the GDP per person in a country's population. It indicates the amount of output or income per person in an economy can indicate average productivity or average living standards. GDP per capita can be stated in nominal, real (inflation-adjusted), or PPP terms. At a basic interpretation, per capita GDP shows how much economic production value can be attributed to each individual citizen. This also translates to a measure of overall national wealth since GDP market value per person also readily serves as a prosperity measure.
GDP Growth
The GDP growth rate compares the year-over-year (or quarterly) change in a country's economic output in order to measure how fast an economy is growing. Usually expressed as a percentage rate, this measure is popular for economic policymakers because GDP growth is thought to be closely connected to key policy targets such as inflation and unemployment rates.
If GDP growth rates accelerate, it may be a signal that the economy is "overheating" and the central bank may seek to raise interest rates. Conversely, central banks see a shrinking (or negative) GDP growth rate (i.e., a recession) as a signal that rates should be lowered and that stimulus may be necessary.
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