Military History | How To Make War | Wars Around the World Rules of Use How to Behave on an Internet Forum
United Kingdom Discussion Board
   Return to Topic Page
Subject: Britain's GDP per capita overtakes America's
AdamB    1/6/2008 2:17:23 PM
Britain now has a HIGHER GDP per capita than the United States for the first time since the 19th century, the days when Britain was the richest country in the world and had the world's largest economy (the US overtook Britain as the world's largest economy at some point in the 1890s). In 2008, Britain's GDP per capita will be £23,500, compared to just £23,250 for the United States. The British are about to become richer than their American counterparts. Britain has grown in wealth over the last few decades much more quickly than the US, Germany and France. In the early 1990s, Britain's GDP per capita was 34% below America's, 33% lower than Germany's and 26% lower than France's. Now, Britain's GDP per capita is just above that of the US, and 8% above Germany (£21,665) and France's (£21,700). Not only are the British now richer than their American counterparts, but the standard of living of the British also outstrips that of Americans. January 6, 2008 Booming Britain UK living standards outstrip US Living standards outstrip those across the Atlantic for first time in over a century David Smith, Economics Editor [img]http://www.w-l-c.co.uk/images/london_03.jpg[/img] [SIZE="4"]Friends having a drink at a trendy London bar: In 2008, the GDP per capita - and standard of living - of Britain will become higher than that of the United States, and it has been substantially higher than France and Germany's for the last few years[/SIZE] LIVING standards in Britain are set to rise above those in America for the first time since the 19th century, according to a report by the respected Oxford Economics consultancy. The calculations suggest that, measured by gross domestic product per capita, Britain can now hold its head up high in the economic stakes after more than a century of playing second fiddle to the Americans. It says that GDP per head in Britain will be £23,500 this year, compared with £23,250 in America, reflecting not only the strength of the pound against the dollar but also the UK economy’s record run of growth and rising incomes going back to the early 1990s. In those days, according to Oxford Economics, Britain’s GDP per capita was 34% below that in America, 33% less than in Germany and 26% lower than in France. Now, not only have average incomes crept above those in America but they are more than 8% above France (£21,700) and Germany (£21,665). “The past 15 years have seen a dramatic change in the UK’s economic performance and its position in the world economy,” said Adrian Cooper, managing director of Oxford Economics. “No longer are we the ‘sick man of Europe’. Indeed, our calculations suggest that UK living standards are now a match for those of the US.” Although many people will be surprised by the figures, Americans have long complained that average incomes have been stagnant in their country. One often-quoted statistical comparison suggests that in real terms the median male full-time salary in America is no higher now than it was in the 1970s. Oxford Economics says that while the comparisons are affected by sterling’s high value against the dollar, they also reflect longer-term factors. “The UK has been catching up steadily with living standards in the US since 2001- so, it is a well established trend rather than simply the result of currency fluctuations,” its report says. It concedes, however, that a significant fall in the pound against other currencies would push Britain back down the ladder. It has assumed an exchange rate of just over $2 for the purpose of the calculation but in recent days the pound has slipped below that level. The Oxford analysts also point out that Americans benefit from lower prices than those in Britain. With an adjustment made for this “purchasing power parity”, the average American has more spending power than his UK counterpart and pays lower taxes. (In the run-up to Christmas many Britons travelled to New York and other American cities to take advantage of the strength of sterling against the dollar and those lower prices.) However, the British typically have significantly longer holidays than Americans as well as access to “free” healthcare. The figures may be of small comfort to Britons worried about house prices and facing a severe squeeze on their incomes this year as a result of record petrol prices and rising energy bills. Citigroup, which was the most accurate forecaster of Britain’s economy last year, predicts the slowest rise in consumer spending this year since 1992. “After the credit-fuelled boom in domestic demand and asset prices, the UK economy now faces a hangover, with slowing credit growth, falling property prices and tightening lending standards,” said Michael Saunders, its UK economist. Last week oil prices hit $100 a barrel, presaging a rise in petrol and diesel prices on the fore-courts. Npower, Britain’s fourth biggest energy supplier, announced that energy price
 
Quote    Reply

Show Only Poster Name and Title     Newest to Oldest
Hugo    When the regular press talks economics..   1/6/2008 2:30:05 PM
zzzzzz
 
Quote    Reply

Armchair Private       1/6/2008 6:50:11 PM
More to do with how many dollars you can buy with the pound rather than anything else, and the pound is artificially high.

It's gonna go down alot. Then again so will the dollar.

Cut UK taxes to US levels and the UK could probably very quickly boast this for real, Exchequer would probably make more tax too....

More interesting post might be:

Do the UK and US represent a new post-industrial paradigm shift in economics now that they've moved largely to service sector and consumption based growth? Or are they giant ponzi schemes now they don't make anything, or create little of real (usable, necessary) value?

 
Quote    Reply

tigertony    What matters!   1/6/2008 8:16:04 PM
List by the World Bank
List by the CIA World Factbook
Rank
Country
GDP (PPP) $m
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Newworldmap.svg/22px-Newworldmap.svg.png'); WIDTH: 1px; HEIGHT: 1px">
 
66,228,669
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Flag_of_Europe.svg/22px-Flag_of_Europe.svg.png'); WIDTH: 1px; HEIGHT: 1px">
 
13,881,051
1
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png'); WIDTH: 1px; HEIGHT: 1px">
 
13,020,861
2
Quote    Reply

Padfoot       1/6/2008 10:23:24 PM

More to do with how many dollars you can buy with the pound rather than anything else, and the pound is artificially high.

It's gonna go down alot. Then again so will the dollar.

Cut UK taxes to US levels and the UK could probably very quickly boast this for real, Exchequer would probably make more tax too....

More interesting post might be:

Do the UK and US represent a new post-industrial paradigm shift in economics now that they've moved largely to service sector and consumption based growth? Or are they giant ponzi schemes now they don't make anything, or create little of real (usable, necessary) value?

I'd say Britain's new found wealth has more to do with globalization than anything. Also, it's a not quite true that countries like Britain , US, etc., don't make anything anymore. I'd hazard a guess that Britain manufactures more now that it did in the 70's, it's just a smaller piece of a much larger pie now days.

I think it's great though that Britain has overtaken USA in GDP per capita. Furthermore, Britain has now overtaken the USA and Germany to be the largest donor to the World Bank  - make those predictions 30 years ago and you'd would have been ridiculed beyond belief - but I think it's wrong to equate these figures to living standards, in the US the purchasing power of  income is still higher than that of the UK.



 
Quote    Reply

Nanheyangrouchuan       1/7/2008 1:28:35 AM



More to do with how many dollars you can buy with the pound rather than anything else, and the pound is artificially high.

It's gonna go down alot. Then again so will the dollar.

Cut UK taxes to US levels and the UK could probably very quickly boast this for real, Exchequer would probably make more tax too....

More interesting post might be:

Do the UK and US represent a new post-industrial paradigm shift in economics now that they've moved largely to service sector and consumption based growth? Or are they giant ponzi schemes now they don't make anything, or create little of real (usable, necessary) value?


I'd say Britain's new found wealth has more to do with globalization than anything. Also, it's a not quite true that countries like Britain , US, etc., don't make anything anymore. I'd hazard a guess that Britain manufactures more now that it did in the 70's, it's just a smaller piece of a much larger pie now days.

I think it's great though that Britain has overtaken USA in GDP per capita. Furthermore, Britain has now overtaken the USA and Germany to be the largest donor to the World Bank  - make those predictions 30 years ago and you'd would have been ridiculed beyond belief - but I think it's wrong to equate these figures to living standards, in the US the purchasing power of  income is still higher than that of the UK.





I'm curious as to how much of this growth is due purely to domestic UK growth and what effect being the center of the Commonwealth has to do with it, if anything.  Does free trade with India through the Commonwealth have an impact?
 
Quote    Reply

eldnah       1/7/2008 1:59:18 PM
I have read the recent articles on the increase in the UK's GDP vs the US's but am at a loss to see how this relates to std of living. The last time I visited London and New York at about the same time prior to this past fall was five years ago when the Pound was worth about $1.50 vs $2.00 today and I did not notice any substantial difference in relative real prices, if anything things were relatively more expensive in the UK now than they were before. From comparable hotel rooms to opera tickets to pizzas to restaurants to consumer goods to petrol, things were then are now clearly cheaper in the US. Perhaps that's why many Brits vacation and shop in the US. The change in exchange rate has not been reflected in a change in purchasing power and until that occurs there cannot be a real change in std of living.
 
Quote    Reply



 Latest
 News
 
 Most
 Read
 
 Most
 Commented
 Hot
 Topics