gross domestic product

noun

Definition of gross domestic product

: the gross national product excluding the value of net income earned abroad

Examples of gross domestic product in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The figure is also around the gross domestic product of Palau and other small nations. — Kaitlin Menza, House Beautiful, "The Most Expensive Home Ever Sold In The U.S. Is In 220 Central Park South," 24 Jan. 2019 The big jump in the second quarter reflected the fact that the gross domestic product, the country's total output of goods and services, accelerated to a growth rate of 4.1 percent in the second quarter, the strongest quarterly gain since 2014. — Martin Crutsinger, Fox News, "US productivity grew at strong 2.9 percent rate in Q2," 15 Aug. 2018 Health-care spending as a share of the U.S. gross domestic product remained relatively stable at 17.9%, vs. 18% the year before. — Stephanie Armour, WSJ, "Growth in U.S. Health-Care Spending Slows," 6 Dec. 2018 The Commerce Department says the performance of the gross domestic product, the country's total output of goods and services, was unchanged from its estimate last month. — Martin Crutsinger, Fox News, "US economy grew at robust 4.2 percent rate in Q2," 27 Sep. 2018 California is the world's fifth-largest economy with a gross domestic product of more than $2.7 trillion in 2017, the Associated Press reported in May, citing federal data. — Phil Helsel /, NBC News, "Proposal to split California into three states earns spot on November ballot," 13 June 2018 In addition, data revisions released by Statistics Canada indicate the level of the country’s gross domestic product is 1% lower than the central bank previously believed. — Paul Vieira, WSJ, "Low Oil Prices Present Latest Shock to Canadian Economy," 6 Dec. 2018 As Eloranta pointed out, NATO members committed in 2014 to spending 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense by 2024. — Heather Souvaine Horn, The New Republic, "Is It Fair for Trump to Bash NATO Over Military Spending?," 12 July 2018 But as the economy has surged — diversifying from oil into manufacturing, telecommunications and a thriving film industry to give Nigeria the biggest gross domestic product in Africa — so has interest in fashion, music and art. — Siobhan O'grady, latimes.com, "As demand for Nigerian art booms abroad, a homegrown movement looks to inspire domestic collectors too," 21 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gross domestic product.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Statistics for gross domestic product

Last Updated

6 Feb 2019

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The first known use of gross domestic product was in 1951

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More Definitions for gross domestic product

gross domestic product

noun

Financial Definition of gross domestic product

What It Is

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the broadest quantitative measure of a nation's total economic activity. More specifically, GDP represents the monetary value of all goods and services produced within a nation's geographic borders over a specified period of time.

How It Works

The Department of Commerce releases GDP data for the U.S. economy on a quarterly basis at 8:30 am EST on the last business day of the next quarter.

The equation used to calculate GDP is as follows:

GDP = Consumption + Government Expenditures + Investment + Exports - Imports

The components used to calculate GDP include:

Consumption:
Durable goods (items expected to last more than three years)
Nondurable goods (food and clothing)
Services

Government Expenditures:
Defense
Roads
Schools

Investment Spending:
Nonresidential (spending on plants and equipment), Residential (single-family and multi-family homes)
Business inventories

Net Exports:
Exports are added to GDP
Imports are deducted from GDP

The GDP report also includes information regarding inflation:
The implicit price deflator measures changes in prices and spending patterns.
The fixed-weight price deflator measures price changes for a fixed basket of over 5,000 goods and services.

GDP is calculated both in current dollars and in constant dollars. Current Dollar GDP involves calculating economic activity in present-day dollars. This, however, makes time period comparisons difficult due to the effects of inflation. By comparison, Constant Dollar GDP factors out the impact of inflation and allows for easy comparisons by converting the value of the dollar in other time periods to present-day dollars.

Why It Matters

When GDP declines for two consecutive quarters or more, by definition the economy is in a recession. Meanwhile, when GDP grows too quickly and fears of inflation arise, the Federal Reserve often attempts to stimulate the economy by raising interest rates.

Source: Investing Answers

gross domestic product

noun

English Language Learners Definition of gross domestic product

: the total value of the goods and services produced by the people of a nation during a year not including the value of income earned in foreign countries

See the full definition for gross domestic product in the English Language Learners Dictionary