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Erich Strassner of the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and Gregory Ip of The Economist discuss a government report that analyzes gross domestic product (GDP) for 22 industry sectors on a quarterly basis.
Gross domestic product, the total dollar value of goods and services sold in the U.S., has become fundamental to American economic policy. But there are other essential assets, qualities and conditions that GDP can't measure, like the health of the environment or society. Economics correspondent Paul Solman looks at another way of measuring progress that takes more of these variables into account.
Beginning April 25, 2014, BEA for the first time will start producing on a regular basis quarterly estimates of economic activity generated by 22 industries.
Nicole Mayerhauser and Jim Tankersley talked about the history of American consumers' spending habits on goods and services. Topics included the effect on the gross domestic product and the economy overall, personal income and the savings rate, changes in consumer buying habits, and changes in consumer behavior since the recession of 2008-09. They responded to telephone calls and electronic communications. This program was part of C-SPAN’s regular Friday “America by the Numbers” series.
The Commerce Department is now including creations in arts and entertainments industries -- such as books, music, and movies -- to calculate the nation's GDP. Using this formula, the GDP actually grew 2.8 percent last year, not the 2.2 percent that was originally reported. Anthony Mason reports.
Steve Landefeld, director of the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis, explains how the GDP became the most important measure of economic growth and how it has evolved.
CBS News: "What is the origin of GDP?" (July 31, 2013; archived version via the Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
Ryan Avent and Steve Landefeld talked about perceptions, misconceptions and myths about the U.S. economy. Topics included tax rates, federal spending and the debt, wages and income, off-shore and foreign ownership, and the nation’s economic standing in the world. They responded to telephone calls and electronic communications.
Supplemental Information: View the slides from the broadcast
This program was part of C-SPAN’s regular Friday “America by the Numbers” series.
Brent Moulton and Neil Irwin talked about the 2012 earnings report, the government’s first look at how much Americans earned, spent and saved in 2012, trends in personal income, spending and savings, and how Americans have fared since the recession of 2008-09. He also talked about how the government’s fiscal, tax and social policies have affected Americans' financial well-being.
Supplemental Information: View the slides from the broadcast