C + I + G + (X - M) = GDP

Of the 4 main components of GDP consumption is the largest and in the US economy the Consumer is King. To keep out economy rolling we must have income and we must be out there spending our money. This week you need to examine your spending and think if you are doing your part to keep the economy going.

Spend some time reviewing the various Tables and Charts in Section 3.1. These images present the breakdown of what consumers spend their money on. Your spending may not be consistent with the trends and percentages shown but they do give us an idea of how our spending has changed over time. For me the pie chart in Figure 3.5 would shift around because I have a larger mortgage to pay every month that eats up about 50% of my personal pie chart!

If you don't feel comfortable sharing your own experiences you can comment on Figure 3.6 showing the trends over the past 55 years and Figure 3.7 showing how things shifted during and after the COVID-19 recession. What trends were we seeing in spending in the US prior to COVID-19? Take a look at the most recent data available on 2022 and note what is happening in various spending categories:https://apps.bea.govational/pdf/SNTables.pdf What implications might these changes in spending patterns have on jobs and wages within our country?

Think about how things have changed in the past three years. Think about Hawaii's economy without tourism. What has happened to our businesses? What is happening now that we are about back to 2019 tourist numbers?

Consumer Spending is a big topic so pick one aspect and share your thoughts.

Components of GDP on the Demand Side (in Percentage of trillions of dollars) Total Consumption $14.0 67.2% Investment $3.6 17.4% Government $3.9 18.5% Exports $2.2 10.2% Imports -$2.8 -13.3% Total GDP $20.9 100% Table 3.1 Components of U.S. GDP in 2020: From the Demand Side (Source: http://bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfm) Net Exports 3.1% Government 18.5% Investment 17.4% Consumption 67.2% Figure 3.3 Percentage of Components of U.S. GDP on the Demand Side Consumption makes up over half of the demand side components of the GDP (Source: http://bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfm)Change in inventories Structures