| Economy | United States |
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Economy - overview:
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The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $48,000. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business firms enjoy greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to enter their rivals' home markets than foreign firms face entering US markets. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a "two-tier labor market" in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. The war in March-April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq, and the subsequent occupation of Iraq, required major shifts in national resources to the military. Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage in the Gulf Coast region in August 2005, but had a small impact on overall GDP growth for the year. Soaring oil prices between 2005 and the first half of 2008 threatened inflation and unemployment, as higher gasoline prices ate into consumers' budgets. Imported oil accounts for about two-thirds of US consumption. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. The merchandise trade deficit reached a record $847 billion in 2007, but declined to $810 billion in 2008, as a depreciating exchange rate for the dollar against most major currencies discouraged US imports and made US exports more competitive abroad. The global economic downturn, the sub-prime mortgage crisis, investment bank failures, falling home prices, and tight credit pushed the United States into a recession by mid-2008. To help stabilize financial markets, the US Congress established a $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) in October 2008. The government used some of these funds to purchase equity in US banks and other industrial corporations. In January 2009 the US Congress passed and President Barack OBAMA signed a bill providing an additional $787 billion fiscal stimulus - two-thirds on additional spending and one-third on tax cuts - to create jobs and to help the economy recover. |
GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$14.29 trillion (2008 est.)
$14.11 trillion (2007)
$13.83 trillion (2006)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars |
GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$47,000 (2008 est.)
$46,800 (2007 est.)
$46,300 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars |
GDP (official exchange rate):
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$14.33 trillion (2008 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate:
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1.3% (2008 est.)
2% (2007 est.)
2.8% (2006 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 1.2%
industry: 19.6%
services: 79.2% (2008 est.) |
Investment (gross fixed):
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14.6% of GDP (2008 est.) |
Population below poverty line:
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12% (2004 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 30% (2007 est.) |
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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45 (2007) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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4.2% (2008 est.) |
Central bank discount rate:
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0.5% (31 March 2009) |
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
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3.25% (31 March 2009) |
Stock of money:
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$1.596 trillion (31 December 2007) |
Stock of money - per capita:
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5,196 USD per capita |
Stock of quasi money:
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$8.154 trillion (31 December 2007) |
Stock of quasi money - per capita:
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26,542 USD per capita |
Stock of domestic credit:
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$14.15 trillion (31 December 2007) |
Stock of domestic credit - per capita:
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46,060 USD per capita |
Labor force:
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155.2 million (includes unemployed) (2008 est.) |
Labor force participation rate:
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50.52 % of population |
Labor force - by occupation:
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farming, forestry, and fishing 0.6%, manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts 22.6%, managerial, professional, and technical 35.5%, sales and office 24.8%, other services 16.5%
note: figures exclude the unemployed (2007) |
Unemployment rate:
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7.2% (December 2008 est.) |
Budget:
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revenues: $2.524 trillion
expenditures: $2.979 trillion (2008 est.) |
Budget revenues per capita:
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8,216 USD per capita |
Public debt:
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60.8% of GDP (2007 est.) |
Industries:
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leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining |
Industrial production growth rate:
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0.2% (2008 est.) |
Electricity - production:
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4.167 trillion kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - production per capita:
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13,564 kWh per capita |
Electricity - consumption:
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3.892 trillion kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - consumption - per capita:
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12,669 kWh per capita |
Electricity - exports:
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20.14 billion kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - imports:
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51.4 billion kWh (2007 est.) |
Oil - production:
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8.457 million bbl/day (2007 est.) |
Oil - production per capita:
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27,529 bbl/day per capita |
Oil - consumption:
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20.68 million bbl/day (2007 est.) |
Oil - consumption - per capita:
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24.57 bbl/year per capita |
Oil - exports:
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1.165 million bbl/day (2005) |
Oil - imports:
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13.71 million bbl/day (2005) |
Oil - proved reserves:
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20.97 billion bbl (1 January 2008 est.) |
Natural gas - production:
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545.9 billion cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - production per capita:
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1,777 cu m per capita |
Natural gas - consumption:
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652.9 billion cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - consumption - per capita:
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2,126 cu m per capita |
Natural gas - exports:
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23.28 billion cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - imports:
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130.3 billion cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - proved reserves:
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5.977 trillion cu m (1 January 2008 est.) |
Agriculture - products:
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wheat, corn, other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish; forest products |
Current account balance:
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-$568.8 billion (2008 est.) |
Current account balance - per capita:
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-1,851 USD per capita |
Exports:
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$1.377 trillion f.o.b. (2008 est.) |
Exports per capita:
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4,483 USD per capita |
Exports - commodities:
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agricultural products (soybeans, fruit, corn) 9.2%, industrial supplies (organic chemicals) 26.8%, capital goods (transistors, aircraft, motor vehicle parts, computers, telecommunications equipment) 49.0%, consumer goods (automobiles, medicines) 15.0% (2003) |
Exports - partners:
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Canada 21.4%, Mexico 11.7%, China 5.6%, Japan 5.4%, UK 4.3%, Germany 4.3% (2007) |
Imports:
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$2.19 trillion f.o.b. (2008 est.) |
Imports per capita:
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7,129 USD per capita |
Imports - commodities:
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agricultural products 4.9%, industrial supplies 32.9% (crude oil 8.2%), capital goods 30.4% (computers, telecommunications equipment, motor vehicle parts, office machines, electric power machinery), consumer goods 31.8% (automobiles, clothing, medicines, furniture, toys) (2003) |
Imports - partners:
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China 16.9%, Canada 15.7%, Mexico 10.6%, Japan 7.4%, Germany 4.8% (2007) |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$70.57 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold - per capita:
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230 USD per capita |
Debt - external:
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$12.25 trillion (30 June 2007) |
Debt - external - per capita:
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39,875 USD per capita |
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
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$2.22 trillion (2008 est.) |
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home - per capita:
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7,227 USD per capita |
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
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$2.751 trillion (2008 est.) |
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad - per capita:
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8,955 USD per capita |
Market value of publicly traded shares:
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$19.95 trillion (31 December 2007) |
Market value of publicly traded shares - per capita:
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64,939 USD per capita |
Economic aid - donor:
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ODA, $23.53 billion (2006) |
Economic aid - recipient:
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void |
Economic aid - recipient per capita:
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void |
Currency (code):
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US dollar (USD) |
Exchange rates:
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British pounds per US dollar: 0.5302 (2008), 0.4993 (2007), 0.5418 (2006), 0.5493 (2005), 0.5462 (2004)
Canadian dollars per US dollar: 1.0364 (2008), 1.0724 (2007), 1.1334 (2006), 1.2118 (2005), 1.3010 (2004)
Chinese yuan per US dollar: 6.9385 (2008), 7.61 (2007), 7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005), 8.2768 (2004)
euros per US dollar: 0.6827 (2008), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Japanese yen per US dollar: 103.58 (2008), 117.99 (2007), 116.18 (2006) 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004) |
Fiscal year:
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1 October - 30 September |
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