What Was GDP in 2010?:
2010 GDP improved slightly, quarter by quarter. The most recent Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) estimate for 2010 GDP 2010 was $14.526 trillion. This estimate was made on July 29, 2011, and was slightly lower than the previous estimate of $14.657 trillion. This was much better than 2009 GDP of $13.9 trillion. Here's the most recent estimate of GDP for each quarter in 2010 (followed by the prior year estimate in parentheses):
- Q1: $14.278 ($14.446) trillion
- Q2: $14.467 ($14.579) trillion
- Q3: $14.60 ($14.745) trillion
- Q4: $14.755 ($14.861) trillion.
What Was the GDP Growth Rate in 2010?:
In 2010, the GDP growth rate was 3% (better than the prior estimate of 2.8%). In other words, the economy grew 3%. Here's the GDP growth rate for each quarter in 2010 (followed by the prior estimate in parentheses):
- Q1: 3.9% (3.7%)
- Q2: 3.8% (1.7%)
- Q3: 2.5% (2.6%)
- Q4: 2.3% (2.8%).
What Is GDP?:
GDP is Gross Domestic Product, which is everything produced by all the people and all the companies in the U.S. GDP doesn't include imports and income from U.S. companies and Americans who are outside the country. Components for final products, such as computer chips, aren't counted, just the final product, such as the computer.GDP is important because it measures the economic strength of the country.
GDP also refers to the GDP growth rate. This measures the changes in GDP from quarter to quarter. In other words, the GDP growth rate measures economic growth. The ideal GDP growth rate is between 2-3%. Less than 2% will not create new jobs for the growing labor force. More than 3% means the economy is headed toward an asset bubble. This generally creates inflation and rising prices. Sometimes higher prices will cool off demand. More often, the bubble bursts, and the economy descends into recession. At that point, the economy contracts, and the GDP growth rate turns negative.
