Gross National Product quantifies the total dollar value of a country’s goods and services in any given time period. It includes items that the country manufactures and services that the country’s businesses provide, such as health care and education. The final calculation takes into account the country’s imported products and services and excludes those goods and services that a country exports. Gross National Product increases or decreases to the extent that a country’s output of goods and services increases or decreases.

Business leaders, investors and politicians rely upon Gross National Product as a key economics indicator revealing whether a particular economy remains prosperous or not. Politicians use Gross National Product estimates when they prepare budgets and financial outlooks. Investors regard it as a pivotal national account forecasting economic activity. Make the most of your investigation into Gross National Product by examining the most notable resources:

1. Consult official sources for Gross National Product figures.

2. Seek professional advice on the significance of Gross National Product.

3. Access Gross National Product training resources so you can perform your own interpretation of the data.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get credible and timely Gross National Product data from authoritative sources

Find the federal agencies whose Gross National Product information becomes the data that government officials and business leaders use in their economics forecasting.

I recommend: The Interactive Access to National Income and Product Accounts Tables on the website of the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis tabulates Gross National Product figures by month. National Economic Accounts provides online access to articles that explain how the Bureau calculated the national figures. The tables on the Financial Forecast Center website present the short- and long-term forecasts of the GNP.

Take advantage of free Gross National Product advice that influential journals offer

Read leading online business magazines for help with Gross National Product.

I recommend: Kiplinger.com has a business resource center that provides professional commentary on key economics indicators like the Gross National Product you can depend on to assess their impact on markets. Forbes.com publishes online analyses probing how services like education factor into Gross National Product.

Study how the experts compute Gross National Product data

Engaging in your own Gross National Product training means you won't need to hire a Gross national Product consultant.

I recommend: The National Council on Economic Education provides online lessons explaining how the Gross National Product is calculated and how you can distinguish it from Gross Domestic Product. The UC Atlas of Global Inequality shows you how to interpret distribution patterns of Gross National Product over many years and how to compare GNP/capita data.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  More economics experts today caution against using Gross National Product figures to measure individual incomes. They believe it does not accurately measure some jobs, such as home making, because it cannot distinguish between income of the upper and middle classes.