United StatesSeries · Macro Economics
The US GDP Series
A comprehensive look at the United States' Gross Domestic Product, the broadest measure of economic activity and the single most-watched indicator in macroeconomics.
4 episodes
Episodes
The single number that defines the size of the US economy: total output adjusted for inflation, updated every quarter.
GDP can be measured two ways: by where the money is spent and by where the output is produced. This episode compares both approaches side by side.
How consumer spending, private investment, government outlays, and trade drive the economy, and how their shares have shifted over time.
Which industries produce the economy's output, how their shares have shifted over decades, and what the changing mix tells you about the structure of US production.