What is GDP, how is it worked out – and why does it make some people very angry? Find out in the Big Money Questions Show
GDP, GDP, GDP… it’s a termed that’s used relentlessly by politicians, in the media, by central bankers. But what actually is it, how is it calculated – and how useful a number is it?
In this episode of the Big Money Questions, Diane Coyle – professor of economics at the University of Manchester and author of GDP: A Brief But Affectionate History – gives an easy explainer and talks through the number’s merits and its flaws.
Although it’s often referred to with utter reverence, GDP is not a fixed measurement like, say, the temperature today or the height of a particular mountain.
In fact, it’s exposed to human error, the whims of government – and gets a few groups of people very angry.
Watch the Big Money Questions to find out more – you might not ever look on this unassuming little number in the same way again.
In all its glory: GDP growth since 2003 and how the number has risen over the same period
