Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of all the final goods and services produced in a country in a given period. As early as the 19th century, the need to compile information on the evolution of an economy over time prompted economists to develop aggregate calculations of a country's total production. In 1942, the U.S. Department of Commerce published the first official set of national accounts: a set of statistics that measure the country's economic variables, the most important measures being GDP and gross national product (GNP).

The Economic Dimension of the Gross Domestic Product

In the GDP, all the goods and services produced are aggregated in terms of value, that is, in terms of the prices paid by the buyers. Because some ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles