![econlifelogotrademarkedwebsitelogo[1]](/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/econlifelogotrademarkedwebsitelogo1.png#100878)
Where Traffic Lights Are Unnecessary
July 8, 2024
Where a Six-Day Workweek Is What Workers Want
July 10, 2024
How to decide if the world has become a better place?
We can ask about changes in poverty, literacy, democracy, vaccination, and child mortality rates.
Our World in Data had some of the answers:
Richest Countries
Meanwhile, also asking how we are doing, the Economist identified the world’s richest nations. Seemingly simple, the question requires deciding which variables to use among a slew of possibilities.
The Economist’s criteria focused on three ways to measure income. They looked at GDP per person, dollar income per hour worked, and income adjusted for local prices:
As you can see, for all three measures, Qatar is #3. Meanwhile, Luxembourg had two #1 slots with Norway at the top for income from hours worked. Then, with a divided #2 rank, Switzerland was second for per capita GDP, Singapore for purchasing power, and Luxembourg, hours worked.
So, where are we?
Our Bottom Line: Economic Systems
Whether looking at the three basic economic systems–the market, central planning, tradition– or their permutations, we can revert to the three questions that all economies have to answer. They need to determine what goods and services will be produced, how they will be made, and who will receive the income for making them.
Indeed, we can better understand who is richest by returning to the basics– to different economic systems and their ability to create and spread wealth.
My sources and more: From time to time, I always like to check the Economist’s Graphic Detail. This one about the richest countries snagged my interest. Please note that our featured image is from The Economist.
