Gross domestic product (original) (raw)
The gross domestic product (GDP) is a measure used in economics of the size of a territory's economy.
It is defined as the total value of all goods and services produced within that territory during a specified period (most commonly, per year). GDP differs from gross national product in excluding inter-country income transfers, in effect attributing to a territory the product generated within it rather than the incomes received in it.
A common equation for GDP is:
GDP = consumption + investment + government expenditures + exports - imports
Aggregate expenditures are calculated in a similar way, although the aggregate expenditures formula does not account for unplanned investment (left over inventory at the end of the reporting cycle) and is more commonly used by economic theorists.
GDPs of different countries may be compared by converting their value in national currency according to either (a) exchange rates prevailing on international currency markets, or (b) the purchasing power parity (PPP) of each currency relative to a selected standard (usually the United States dollar).
The relative ranking of countries may differ dramatically between the two approaches, as using official exchange rates can routinely understate the relative effective domestic purchasing power of the average producer or consumer within a less-developed economy by 50-60% owing to the weakness of local currencies on world markets.
On the other hand, comparison based on official exchange rates can offer a better indication of a country's purchasing power on the international market for goods and services.
For more information see measures of national income.
List of countries by total GDP, PPP basis
| Rank | Country | PPP total | PPP/capita | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (U.S dollars) | (U.S dollars) | (2003 est.) | ||
| 1. |
10.40 trillion
37,600
290,343,000
2.
5.70 trillion
4,400
1,287,000,000
3.
3.55 trillion
28,000
127,215,000
4.
2.66 trillion
2,540
1,049,701,000
5.
2.18 trillion
26,600
82,399,000
6.
1.54 trillion
25,700
60,181,000
7.
1.52 trillion
25,300
60,095,000
8.
1.44 trillion
25,000
57,998,000
9.
1.35 trillion
9,300
144,526,000
10.
1.34 trillion
7,600
182,032,000
11.
931 billion
19,400
48,249,000
12.
923 billion
29,400
32,207,000
13.
900 billion
9,000
104,908,000
14.
828 billion
20,700
40,218,000
15.
663 billion
3,100
234,894,000
16.
528 billion
27,000
19,732,000
17.
468 billion
7,000
68,110,000
18.
456 billion
7,000
68,279,000
19.
434 billion
26,900
16,151,000
20.
432 billion
10,000
42,769,000
Source: CIA World Factbook: PPP, PPP/Capita, Population
The methodology for deriving accurate PPP comparisons remains under constant review, and questions have been raised as to whether the relative size of Mainland China's GDP may be overstated to some extent.
See also: GDP deflator, Measures of national income, Natural gross domestic product