ECO 100 Week 6 Discussion

Your friend at work says the U.S. economy is not doing well: "We are just not a strong economy

 anymore." You are not entirely convinced by her argument, so you do some research. Here is what you find:

• There are three major powers in the world economy according to total GDP: China at $21.3 trillion; the EU at $19.2 trillion; and the United States at $18.6 trillion (all in real 2016 dollars). Maybe your friend is right?
• Then you look at per capita GDP and it does not seem to tell the same story: China per capita GDP is $15,400; EU per capita GDP is $37,800; and U.S. per capita GDP is $57,300. Maybe your friend is wrong?

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Perhaps we really need to understand what GDP measures and what it does not measure.

Using the above facts, make the case that the United States is still economically strong.

• What does GDP measure and what does that tell us about our country’s economic strength?
• Do you feel that GDP is valuable in understanding our country’s economic strength? Explain why or why not.
• Do you believe that there is a better measure of a country’s economic strength that we should also use (in addition to GDP)? Explain your answer. If you don’t think there is, explain why.