In the fourth quarter 2012, an atypical number of companies paid accelerated dividends. BEA's estimate of gross domestic product (GDP) was not affected because these dividend payments do not represent income associated with current period production of goods and services. Similarly, the estimate of gross domestic income, which is conceptual equivalent to GDP, was not affected. However, the NIPAs include a number of detailed accounts, such as the personal income and outlays account and the government receipts and expenditures account, which are affected by dividend payments.
The NIPAs include estimates of net dividends paid by corporate business, derived as the difference between dividends paid by corporations less those received by corporations. Net dividends paid are subtracted from profits before tax to derive undistributed profits. The NIPAs also include estimates of the value of these dividends distributed to persons, government, and the rest of the world.
For more information regarding the accelerated dividends paid in the fourth quarter of 2012 please see the "Technical Note" that BEA issues concurrently with each of the quarterly GDP releases. For more information on how dividend payments are treated in the national income and product accounts please see the FAQ: "How are dividends defined in the U.S. national accounts?"
For more information regarding the impact on personal income of special and accelerated dividends paid in the fourth quarter of 2012 please see BEA's "Personal Income and Outlays, January 2013" report released on March 1, 2013.