Hi,

When viewing output growth rates for a country, as measured as percentages, do the percentages refer to an increase in output growth relative to a base years GDP or do the percentages representing output growth refer to the amount of growth in each period, on top of the previous period?

i.e. if in 2011, output growth was 3.5% and for 2012 it was 4.5%, in total did the economy grow over 2011 and 2012 by 8% or by 1%(using 2010 as base year)?

The same reasoning is confusing me with unemployment rates!

Thank you!
Angus.

Whenever I look at stats for growth (which isn't often), I see variations, usually under a graph, specifying the basis for the calculations.
Can you provide a link to the one you are referring to?

Unemployment rates are figured for each month and each calendar year. This I have studied more. It's a complicated measurement, and it all boils down to the fact that the Dept of Labor can't really know what every single US citizen is doing at a given time. One huge stat affecting it these years is the baby boomers hitting age 65 on average 10,000 per DAY. We don't really know how many of them are still in the work force or not. Yet they remain part of the Participating Labor Force til they die. Anyone age 16+ is if they have ever worked. Unless they go into the military, prison, and some other areas.

In effect, the UI rate is an estimate, and thus previous months and years are important because the estimates are relative to past ones.