US Economy Fast Facts and Summary

The United States of America is a union of fifty states in North America. It is the world's third-largest economy. It is a mixed economy. That means it operates as a free market economy in consumer goods and business services. But, even in those areas, the government imposes regulations to protect the good of all.  It operates as a command economy in defense, some retirement benefits, some medical care, and in many other areas.

The U.S. Constitution created and protects America's mixed economy. 

Fast Facts

• Gross Domestic Product: $19.250 trillion (Annualized rate for April - June 2017)
• GDP Growth Rate: 3.1 percent (Annualized rate for April - June 2017)
• GDP per Capita: $57,300 (2016)
• Gross National Income: $18.138 trillion PPP dollars (2015) World Bank
• Unemployment Rate: 4.3 percent (September 2017)
• Minimum Wage: $7.25 per hour  
• Currency: United States Dollar
• Euro to Dollar Conversion: $1.17 as of October 2017

Definitions

The following are the most critical definitions of U.S. economy measurements.

GDP is the nation's gross domestic product. That measures everything produced in the United States, whether its by U.S. citizens and companies or foreigners.  There are three critical measurements of GDP. Nominal GDP is the basic measurement. It gives an annualized figure. That means it says how much would be produced for the year if the economy kept going at the same rate.

Real GDP does the same, but removes the effects of inflation. Economists use it to compare GDP over time. The GDP growth rate uses real GDP to produce the growth compared to last quarter or last year. 

There are four components of GDP. Consumer Spending, which is nearly 70 percent of the total. Business Investment includes manufacturing, real estate construction, and intellectual properties.

It is of the total. Government spending is 17 percent. The fourth component is Net Exports. That's exports, which add to the nation's economy, and imports, which subtract from it. The United States has a trade deficit, which means it imports more than it exports. It biggest export is also its biggest import, and that's oil. 

The U.S. budget is total federal income and spending. The government receives most of its revenue from income taxes. Most of its spending goes toward three large expenses: Social Security benefits, military spending, and Medicare. When spending is greater than revenue, there is a budget deficit. The Federal government has had a deficit every year since 1999. Each year's deficit gets added to the debt.

The U.S. debt is $20 trillion. That's more than its entire economic output. The statistic that describes this is the debt-to-GDP ratio. 

Durable goods orders report on how much is ordered of items that last longer than a year. The bulk of this is defense and commercial aircraft, since they are so expensive. It also includes automobiles. A critical measurement within durable goods is capital goods. That's the machinery and equipment business need everyday. They only order those expensive items when they are sure the economy is getting better.

Major Influences

The Federal Reserve System is the nation's central bank. That means it controls the U.S. money supply. It does that by changing interest rates with the Fed funds rate. It also adjusts the money banks have available to lend with open market operations. It adjust the money supply to manage inflation and the unemployment rate. It's called expansionary monetary policy when it adds to the money supply. It does that when it lowers interest rates or adds credit to banks to lend. That speeds up growth, and lowers unemployment. If the economy grows too fast and creates inflation, the Fed will use contractionary monetary policy. It raises interest rates or removes credit from banks' balance sheets. That lower the money supply, and slows growth. 

The Fed has three other functions. It supervises and regulates many of the nation’s banks.