Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Sex, drugs and weapons blow on GDP – www.dw.de

Sex, drugs and weapons blow on GDP – www.dw.de

Question: What spending on research and development, prostitution, drug smuggling and arms trafficking have in common? They are all economic activities. And are uniformly included in the calculation of the respective annual economic output, gross domestic product across Europe from September 1.

to GDP so new items are added, it becomes larger. Behind one could assume the intention nice attribute sovereign debt in Europe. Even if one breaks down no debt, the debt ratio decreases when the GDP rises. “We have to deny decidedly: The whole process is not politically motivated, he was not from the beginning,” says Norbert Rath, the Federal Statistical Office in Wiesbaden responsible for the calculation of the domestic product. Apply new rules for the first time on 14 August 2014th

Him and all other statisticians in the world, it is solely at the international comparability of data. “Political momentum has it, not given in advance,” says Norbert Räth to DW. In fact, the new calculation methods at the United Nations are discussed as 2003 and the new System of National Accounts (SNA) was adopted in 2008. Australia was the first to apply it, the United States expected under the new rules since July 2013, already expected in the European Union, France and the Netherlands to the new standards, and from 1 September they are legally binding in all EU countries. ‘ / p>

Nice Convert worth hardly

Arms Export Germany Leopard 2 A6

No consumption, but an investment: German Tank Leopard

The new rules are, incidentally, hardly calculated to beautiful attribute Europe’s debt level. Wolfgang Nierhaus from Munich Ifo Institute has based on figures from 2011 times calculated. “Regarding the public debt ratios, as would those in the EU average by 1.9 percentage points reduce “, Nierhaus writes in” Ifo quick service. “In Germany the ratio by 2.3 percentage points, from 80 would drop to 77.7 percent of GDP. And that was more than” to denote marginal “, writes Nierhaus.

It is clear, however, what the tabloids will fall. because the income from prostitution and drug trafficking and smuggling are added to the GDP. For Norbert Räth by the Federal Statistical Office is old hat. “Actually, we have no concept change. It was always like that. It should include all relevant economic benefits without any moral judgment, no matter what that is.”

has always recognized

What is new is that it has been agreed in Europe on a consistent calculation. So there are in Germany, according to official estimates, about 400,000 prostitutes, of which about 20,000 men who take 14.6 billion euros per year. Minus the various inputs such as rent in brothels, work clothes and condoms statisticians come to a “gross value added” of around 7.3 billion euros

Similarly with the drug. Surveys commissioned by the Federal Minister of Health knows you the approximate extent of illicit drug use in Germany. This is multiplied by the respective black market prices. And who knows the Federal very well. Also what the state spends on armaments, now subject to new accounting rules. “The production of weapons was of course Captured always,” says Norbert Räth by the Federal Statistical Office. Only they had been previously recorded as consumption of the state, and now it will invest. “Ultimately, you always need a convention. Which must not share any, but for reasons of comparability it is necessary to come to a uniform solution.”

From wholesale to invest

This also applies to the calculation of expenditure on research and development. Which were previously treated as “inputs” that disappear in the production process, so to speak. Now, however, the expenditure on research and development in the national accounts are recorded as gross fixed capital formation – which experts have long been calling for. For research and development’re investing in the future -., And is also the largest chunk in the recalculation of GDP

“. A specific number I can not call what we will publish soon,” says Norbert Räth. “But overall, could the level of domestic product by about three percent are higher, or about 80 billion euros. And get away with three-quarters of the new treatment of research and development.”

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