U.S. Economic Facts & Figures

Labor & Jobs

As of Sept. 2, 2011, the U.S. unemployment rate stood at 9.1 percent, or 14 million Americans. The number of involuntary part-time workers rose from 8.4 million to 8.8 million.

Trends for the month: Industries adding jobs include health care, mining, computer systems design and services; industries reducing jobs is government. The numbers for August include a special situations of a strike in information/telecommunications employment. (Source: DoL)

Trade

Exports: The United States has one of the lowest--if not THE lowest--export volumes as a measure of its overall economy of all industrialized countries. In 2010, the value of U.S. exports measured in at 8.8 percent of the U.S. GDP. In contrast, China's measure was 26.8 percent, Australia was 17.2 percent, and the Euro area was 16.2 percent. (IMF Principal Global Indicators, 2011)

GDP: Defining Recession

A recession is defined as two or more consecutive quarters of economic decline. The U.S. economy started showing a decline in GDP in the third quarter of 2008 and officially went into "a recession" in the fourth quarter of that year. By the first quarter of 2010, GDP started expanding again.

GDP Growth/Loss

U.S. Change in GDP by Year (as a percent)

2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
4.14	1.08	1.73	2.54	3.47	3.07	2.66	1.91	-0.34	-3.49	3.03

Source: IMF via OECD

The Economy This Year (2011)

Despite the talk of the United States heading into a double dip recession, the U.S. economy has continued to expand, albeit only moderately and below trend growth, in 2011. (2.24 percent in the first quarter and 1.55 in the second quarter)