Is there a real global GDP dollar series that can be used to compare economy size across countries?
A. We do not report the value of constant price GDP in a common currency (say U.S. dollars) for the world. However, we do publish a world GDP indexed in 2000, which does measure changes in the world output. The index is constructed as a weighted average of real GDP growth rates for all reporting countries. A country’s weight for this average is its share of nominal GDP at purchasing-power-parity (PPP) exchange rates. One way to convert an individual countrys real GDP series to U.S. dollars is to do the following: 1) Take the current GDP level for that country in terms of U.S. dollars in the year specified as that countrys base year (see Country Information). • Series: Gross domestic product, current prices • U.S. dollars 2) Extend the series from the base year value forwards and backwards by applying the growth rates of real GDP in local currency. • Series: Gross domestic product, constant prices • Annual percent change By following this procedure, a countrys real GDP is in terms of U.
A. We do not report the value of constant price GDP in a common currency (say U.S. dollars) for the world. One way to convert an individual country’s real GDP series to U.S. dollars is to do the following: 1) Take the current GDP level for that country in terms of U.S. dollars in the year specified as that country’s base year (see Country Information). • Series: Gross domestic product, current prices • U.S. dollars 2) Extend the series from the base year value forwards and backwards by applying the growth rates of real GDP in local currency. • Series: Gross domestic product, constant prices • Annual percent change By following this procedure, a country’s real GDP is in terms of U.S. dollars but maintains the growth rates of the real GDP series.
