america's dynamic workforce: 2008 |
Figure 3-1. GDP per capita in 2006, United States and
selected countries
SOURCE: Department of Labor, A Chartbook of International Labor
Comparisons and Eurostat.
NOTE: GDP estimates are converted to U.S. dollars using purchasing power
parities.
- Data on GDP per capita are remarkable. In 2006, U.S. per capita GDP
totaled $44,200—about 23 percent higher than in Canada, 26 percent higher
than in Australia, and 42 percent higher than the composite amount for the
eurozone countries.10
- What makes such comparisons more striking is the fact that the United
States is such a large country. With a total population of nearly 304
million people, the United States is the third most populous nation in the
world, following China (1.3 billion) and India (1.1 billion). The eurozone
outnumbers the United States in total population (311 million); however, its
labor force is marginally smaller—151 million compared with 153 million in
the United States.11
- The United States also leads the world in manufacturing, followed by
China, Japan, and Germany. The United States contributed 20.5 percent of
global value added in manufacturing in 2006, the latest year with complete
data. China’s value added represented 13.0 percent of the global total,
while Japan’s and Germany’s contributions were 11.0 percent and 7.4 percent,
respectively. The eurozone’s share, at 20.8 percent, is about equal to that
of the United States.12
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