Oxford Economics says the per capita GDP in the UK will soon exceed that in the U. S.:
Analyst Oxford Economics said the UK’s GDP per head of population will reach £23,500 – £250 higher than in the US.
However, because goods and services are cheaper in the US, Americans will have stronger purchasing power, it added.
UK GDP per capita will also be higher than in Germany (£21,665) and France (£21,700), Oxford Economics calculated.
Managing director Adrian Cooper said: “The last 15 years have seen a dramatic change in the UK’s economic performance and its position in the world economy.
“No longer are we the ‘sick man of Europe’.”
Oxford Economics said that in 1993, following the last major recession and the UK’s ejection from the ERM, GDP per capita in the UK was 34% lower than in the US, 33% lower than in Germany and 26% lower than in France.
It said the improved UK position reflected the sustained strong growth it has enjoyed since then and the recent strength of sterling.
The differences in the PPP are important but I wonder what the median income in the UK is. Averages aren’t particularly important.
Still, I think this is a good thing—I’m happy to see economic growth anywhere. I expect the UK to become even richer as money from sovereign wealth funds, particularly that of China, pours into the London financial markets.
Purchasing power (i would call it cost of living) is the real key, not just the number of pounds per capita and the current exchange rate. Petrol is much more expensive in the UK as well as almost everything else, including taxes. When I lived there (many years ago), many items in the UK were twice the cost. The general rule of thumb America expatriots used was that a UK pound spent in Britain about like a US dollar spent in America. This wasn’t true for everything, of course, but it was a fair approximation.