Throughout the Second World War, the United States consistently had the largest gross domestic product (GDP) in the world. Additionally, U.S. GDP grew significantly throughout the war, whereas the economies of Europe and Japan saw relatively little growth, and were often in decline. The impact of key events in the war is also reflected in the trends shown here - the economic declines of France and the Soviet Union coincide with the years of German invasion, while the economies of the three Axis countries experienced their largest declines in the final year of the war.

The Covid-19 pandemic saw growth fall by 2.2 percent, compared with an increase of 2.5 percent the year before. The last time the real GDP growth rates fell by a similar level was during the Great Recession in 2009, and the only other time since the Second World War where real GDP fell by more than one percent was in the early 1980s recession. The given records began following the Wall Street Crash in 1929, and GDP growth fluctuated greatly between the Great Depression and the 1950s, before growth became more consistent.

In 1938, the year before the Second World War, the United States had, by far, the largest economy in the world in terms of gross domestic product (GDP). The five Allied Great Powers that emerged victorious from the war, along with the three Axis Tripartite Pact countries that were ultimately defeated made up the eight largest independent economies in 1938.

When values are converted into 1990 international dollars, the U.S. GDP was over 800 billion dollars in 1938, which was more than double that of the second largest economy, the Soviet Union. Even the combined economies of the UK, its dominions, and colonies had a value of just over 680 billion 1990 dollars, showing that the United States had established itself as the world's leading economy during the interwar period (despite the Great Depression).

Interestingly, the British and Dutch colonies had larger combined GDPs than their respective metropoles, which was a key motivator for the Japanese invasion of these territories in East Asia during the war. Trade with neutral and non-belligerent countries also contributed greatly to the economic development of Allied and Axis powers throughout the war; for example, natural resources from Latin America were essential to the American war effort, while German manufacturing was often dependent on Swedish iron supplies.

View economic output, reported as the nominal value of all new goods and services produced by labor and property located in the U.S.

On October 29, 1929, the U.S. experienced the most devastating stock market crash in it's history. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 set in motion the Great Depression, which lasted for twelve years and affected virtually all industrialized countries. In the United States, GDP fell to it's lowest recorded level of just 57 billion U.S dollars in 1933, before rising again shortly before the Second World War. After the war, GDP fluctuated, but it increased gradually until the Great Recession in 2008. Real GDP Real GDP allows us to compare GDP over time, by adjusting all figures for inflation. In this case, all numbers have been adjusted to the value of the US dollar in FY2012. While GDP rose every year between 1946 and 2008, when this is adjusted for inflation it can see that the real GDP dropped at least once in every decade except the 1960s and 2010s. The Great Recession Apart from the Great Depression, and immediately after WWII, there have been two times where both GDP and real GDP dropped together. The first was during the Great Recession, which lasted from December 2007 until June 2009 in the US, although its impact was felt for years after this. After the collapse of the financial sector in the US, the government famously bailed out some of the country's largest banking and lending institutions. Since recovery began in late 2009, US GDP has grown year-on-year, and reached 21.4 trillion dollars in 2019. The coronavirus pandemic and the associated lockdowns then saw GDP fall again, for the first time in a decade. As economic recovery from the pandemic has been compounded by supply chain issues, inflation, and rising global geopolitical instability, it remains to be seen what the future holds for the U.S. economy.

Graph and download economic data for Gross Federal Debt as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (GFDGDPA188S) from 1939 to 2023 about gross, debt, federal, GDP, and USA.

The United States recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 124.30 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United States Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Throughout the Second World War, the ratio between the combined gross domestic product (GDP) of the major Allied and Axis powers varied greatly. The combined GDP of the Allies was always at least twice that of the Axis powers, however, it is important to remember that U.S. GDP alone was more than the the combined GDP of Germany, Italy, and Japan.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Net Outlays as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (FYONGDA188S) from 1929 to 2024 about outlays, federal, Net, GDP, and USA.

In the build up to the Second World War, the United States was the major power with the highest gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in the world. In 1938, the United States also had the highest overall GDP in the world, and by a significant margin, however differences in GDP per person were much smaller. Switzerland In terms of countries that played a notable economic role in the war, the neutral country of Switzerland had the highest GDP per capita in the world. A large part of this was due to the strength of Switzerland's financial system. Most major currencies abandoned the gold standard early in the Great Depression, however the Swiss Franc remained tied to it until late 1936. This meant that it was the most stable, freely convertible currency available as the world recovered from the Depression, and other major powers of the time sold large amounts of gold to Swiss banks in order to trade internationally. Switzerland was eventually surrounded on all sides by Axis territories and lived under the constant threat of invasion in the war's early years, however Swiss strategic military planning and economic leverage made an invasion potentially more expensive than it was worth. Switzerland maintained its neutrality throughout the war, trading with both sides, although its financial involvement in the Holocaust remains a point of controversy. Why look at GDP per capita? While overall GDP is a stronger indicator of a state's ability to fund its war effort, GDP per capita is more useful in giving context to a country's economic power in relation to its size and providing an insight into living standards and wealth distribution across societies. For example, Germany and the USSR had fairly similar GDPs in 1938, whereas Germany's per capita GDP was more than double that of the Soviet Union. Germany was much more industrialized and technologically advanced than the USSR, and its citizens generally had a greater quality of life. However these factors did not guarantee victory - the fact that the Soviet Union could better withstand the war of attrition and call upon its larger population to replenish its forces greatly contributed to its eventual victory over Germany in 1945.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Surplus or Deficit [-] as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (FYFSGDA188S) from 1929 to 2024 about budget, federal, GDP, and USA.

This paper revisits the assessment of living standards in the United States from its founding to the present, challenging the conventional portrayal of economic well-being during wartime periods. Reflecting multiple criticisms made of the quality of national accounts which include defense spending during times of both peace and war, we employ the methodological framework established by Higgs (1992) and extended by Geloso and Pender (2023) to correct national accounts by subtracting military expenditures from GDP and GNP data. This rectifies the overstatement of living standards attributed to defense spending. Our analysis uses comprehensive data from the Historical Statistics of the United States and the Measuring Worth database, adjusting for price controls during World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War using a corrected price deflator based on a regression model of economic indicators. The study finds that traditional measures significantly overstate living standards during the Civil War, World War I, and World War II. Post-World War II analysis reveals a persistent overestimation of living standards, particularly pronounced during the Vietnam War years. More importantly, our results provide nuanced insights into certain stylized facts of trends in American improvements of living standards (notably inequality and the Great Depression).

The current growing interest in the growth of the Western European economies between the end of World War II and the first oil crisis of 1973 is primarily due to the end of the Cold War and the subsequent demand for solutions for the economic problems of Central and Eastern European transition countries. It was and is discussed to what extent we could learn from the successful rebuilding of the Western European economies. In this context one area of special interest is the reconstruction of West Germany, closely accompanied by the principle of the social market economy. The recollection of this principle, and the call for a new Marshall Plan imply the idea that the Western European post-war boom in essence can be traced to a successful economic policy. It is shown how this assumption can stand up to a theoretical and empirical analysis. Using the new growth theory and the cointegration analysis both national (eg social market economy and Planification (i.e. macroeconomic framework development planning)) and international explanations (eg the Marshall Plan) of the so called ‘golden age’ are examined. It turns out that the impact of economic policies on economic growth must be put into perspective. In contrast, the importance of the different economic conditions of the countries for the explication of their growth process is underlined. Variables, inter alia: - Investment behavior of industry - Production and Export industry - Exchange Rates - Structure of the economies Data focus: Foreign trade structure, external value (foreign wholesale prices), export volume, industrial production, capital stock, long-term development (income, investment rates, openness, exchange rates), patents (patent applications in Germany, France). List of tables in the database HISTAT ZA: - Investment rates in four European countries (1880-1995) - Net fixed assets of the industry in Germany (1950-1968) - Sectoral Gross capital expenditures in Germany (1960-1976) - Sectoral Gross investment in France (1949-1965) - Export volume index of France and the Federal Republic of Germany (1950-1973) - Export volume in millions of current U.S. dollars (1951-1990) - Weighted exchange rate index in indirect rate (1950-1973) - Index of industrial production in Europe and North America (1950-1973) - Construction and equipment investment in Germany (1950-1968) - Investment rates in four European countries (1880-1995) - Sectoral gross and net capital stock in France (1950-1970) - Sectoral gross and net capital stock, investment in France (1950-1969) - Percentage of the French colonies in the French total exports (1950-1973) - Openness of four European economies (1880-1994) - Annual patent applications in the United States (1963-1995) - Real per capita income in Europe and the United States (1870-1992) - Regional structure of the French export value (1896-1973) - French sector gross investment (1960-1976) - Exchange rates in four European countries (1891-1995) Territory of investigation: Germany, France, further OECD-states. Sources: Publications of the official French and German statistics, publications of the OECD, USA and further states; scientific journals. Das aktuell wachsende Interesse an dem Wachstum der westeuropäischen Wirtschaften zwischen dem Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges und der ersten Erdölkrise 1973 hängt in erster Linie mit dem Ende des Kalten Krieges und der darauf folgenden Nachfrage nach Lösungsansätzen für die ökonomischen Probleme der mittel- und osteuropäischen Transformationsländer zusammen. Es wurde und wird diskutiert, inwieweit sich Lehren aus dem erfolgreichen Wiederaufbau der westeuropäischen Wirtschaften ziehen ließen. Ein besonderes Interesse besaß hierbei der Wiederaufbau Westdeutschlands, eng einhergehend mit dem Prinzip der Sozialen Marktwirtschaft. Die Rückbesinnung auf diese und der Ruf nach einem neuen Marshall-Plan implizieren die Vorstellung, dass sich der westeuropäische Nachkriegsboom im Wesentlichen auf eine erfolgreiche Wirtschaftspolitik zurückführen lässt. Es wird gezeigt, inwieweit diese Annahme einer theoretischen und empirischen Analyse standhält. Mit Hilfe der neuen Wachstumstheorie und der Kointegrationsanalyse werden sowohl nationale (z.B. Soziale Marktwirtschaft und Planification) als auch internationale Erklärungsansätze (z.B. Marshall-Plan) des golden age untersucht. Es zeigt sich, dass der Einfluss der Wirtschaftspolitik auf das Wachstum relativiert werden muss. Dagegen wird die Bedeutung der unterschiedlichen Ausgangsbedingungen in den einzelnen Ländern für die Erklärung ihres Wachstumsprozesses unterstrichen. Variablen u.a.: - Investitionsverhalten der Industrie - Produktion und Export der Industrie - Wechselkurse - Struktur der Volkswirtschaften Datenschwerpunkte: Außenhandelsstruktur, Außenwert (ausländische Großhandelspreise), Exportmenge (Exportvolumen), Industrieproduktion, Kapitalstock, langfristige Entwicklung (Einkommen, Investitionsquoten, Offenheitsgrad, Wechselkurse), Patente (Patentanmeldungen Deutschland, Frankreich). Verzeichnis der Tabellen in der ZA-Datenbank HISTAT: - Investitionsquoten in vier europäischen Ländern (1880-1995) - Netto-Anlagevermögen der Industrie in der BRD (1950-1968) - Sektorale Brutto-Investitionen in Deutschland (1960-1976) - Sektorale Bruttoinvestitionen in Frankreich (1949-1965) - Index Exportvolumen Frankreichs und der BRD (1950-1973) - Exportvolumen in Mio. laufenden US Dollar (1951-1990) - Index gewichteter Wechselkurs in Mengennotierung (1950-1973) - Index Industrieproduktion in Europa und Nordamerika (1950-1973) - Bau- und Ausrüstungsinvestitionen in Deutschland (1950-1968) - Investitionsquoten in vier europäischen Ländern (1880-1995) - Sektoraler Brutto- und Nettokapitalstock in Frankreich (1950-1970) - Sektoraler Brutto- und Nettokapitalstock, Investitionen in Frankreich (1950-1969) - Anteil der französischen Kolonien am französischen Gesamtexport (1950-1973) - Offenheitsgrad von vier europäischen Volkswirtschaften (1880-1994) - Jährliche Patentanmeldungen in den USA (1963-1995) - Reales Pro-Kopf-Einkommen in Europa und den USA (1870-1992) - Regionale Struktur des französischen Exportwertes (1896-1973) - Französische sektorale Brutto-Investitionen (1960-1976) - Wechselkurse in vier europäischen Staaten (1891-1995) Veröffentlichungen öffentlicher Statistiken Frankreichs und Deutschlands, der OECD, der USA sowie weitere ausgewählte Einzelstudien; Fachzeitschriften.

The Second World War was fought on such a large scale that it became total war in many countries - this is where the war effort is prioritized above all else, and the entire population and economy are mobilized to support all military endeavors. Germany and Japan were committing over 70 percent of their national income to the war effort in its final years.

There were also notable fluctuations that coincided with major events for corresponding powers. These included the UK's mobilization of its defenses in 1940, after Germany took most of Western Europe; the spike in Soviet military spending after Operation Barbarossa in June, 1941; and the U.S. entry into the war following the Pearl Harbor attacks in December, 1941.

Between 1946 and 1961, the United States distributed over 44.5 billion U.S. dollars to Western European countries in the form of loans or grants. 27.3 billion was given in the form of economic assistance, while 17.2 billion was given as military assistance. The largest sums were given to the United Kingdom and France, who received 8.8 and 8.4 billion dollars respectively. Italy and West Germany, who had been enemies of the U.S. during the Second World War, received the next-largest sums, with both totals over five billion dollars. Disproportional distributions Such grants and loans, particularly those of the Marshall Plan, were distributed on a (fairly rough) per capita basis, although major industrial powers were given disproportionately higher sums, as it was believed that their successful recovery would drive prosperity across the region. Turkey and Greece were also given relatively high sums due to their political and strategic significance during the Cold War, with Turkey receiving significantly more in military assistance than economic. In contrast, Spain received a disproportionately low sum - despite being neutral during the war, Franco's fascist government was unpopular in the U.S. and was excluded from aid in the years immediately following the war; the Spanish government's strong anti-communist saw the U.S. revert this policy with the Pact of Madrid in 1953. The Golden Age The "Golden Age" was a period of relatively uninterrupted economic growth between the end of the Second World War in 1945 and the Recession of 1973-1975. During this time, Western Europe experienced its most economically successful period in recorded history. This success was made possible by various factors, including an increase in European integration, the expansion of welfare and healthcare systems, and widespread industrialization. The United States played a key role in these developments; however, the modern historical consensus is that the largest impact was not through government investment, but rather private investment and the American influence on business practice, consumer buying behavior, and international policy (critics at the time referred to this as Coca-colonization). Along with the new-found peace following decades of war and instability, these factors combined to increase living standards and wages among the public, who generally embraced capitalism and the opportunity to spend their new-found disposable income.

Household saving increased dramatically during World War II, reaching more than 19 percent of GDP. We study the effects of the war bond program implemented by the U.S. government on the level of household saving during the war. The bonds were heavily promoted in a series of drives, which encouraged thrift and associated subscriptions with patriotism, and also through a payroll deduction program. Yet as Friedman and Schwartz have noted, the main effect of the program may have been to change the form in which savings were held, rather than to increase saving. We use county-level data and an instrument for participation in the bond program to estimate the effect of war bond sales on total saving. We find that for every $100 in war bond sales, bank deposit inflows fell by $70, suggesting that while there was substantial substitution between war bonds and bank accounts, the program did actually increase total saving. A back of the envelope calculation suggests that the bond program increased total personal saving by about 7 percent, in large part driven by the voluntary payroll deduction program.

The programs replicate tables and figures from "The Long-Run Impacts of Public Industrial Investment on Local Development and Economic Mobility: Evidence from World War II," by Garin and Rothbaum. Please see the readme file for additional details.

Between 1946 and 1961, the United States distributed over 25 billion U.S. dollars to Asian countries in the form of loans or grants. 17 billion was given in the form of economic assistance, while 8.3 billion was given as military assistance. Of this 25 billion billion, almost 19 billion came during the period between 1953 and 1961, as Asia became the focal point of the U.S.' efforts to contain the spread of communism across the globe. Apart from Japan (occupied by the U.S. following WWII) and the Philippines (became independent from the U.S. in 1946) all other countries received the majority of their loans and grants in the Mutual Security Act period. Korea The largest sum, totaling at over five billion dollars (3.2 billion in economic assistance and 1.8 billion in military assistance), was paid to South Korea. The U.S. has had a permanent presence on the peninsula since the Second World War, and made up the bulk of the UN's forces during the Korean War (1950-1953). Following the war, the U.S. maintained a military presence in South Korea due to the perceived threat of North Korea, an as an additional power base in East Asia. Taiwan The second largest sum was paid to Taiwan. Between the Second World War and 1979, the United States was politically aligned with and financially supported the government in Taiwan. During this time the U.S. had a military presence on the island and officially recognized the Taiwanese government as the official government of China. Taiwan became strategically important during the Korean War, during which the U.S. increased its military presence and investment in the island, in fear of an invasion from the mainland by the People's Republic of China. Following the Sino-Soviet split in the 1960s, the U.S. gradually improved its relationship with the government the People's Republic of China; in 1979, the U.S. changed its stance and officially recognized the Chinese government in Beijing as the legitimate government of China, and largely withdrew from Taiwan.

In 1940, the Soviet Union produced significantly less industrial material than the United States in terms of natural resources and construction materials. The same was true when compared with Germany, apart from iron and steel; the USSR produced over double the amount of iron ore as Germany, and a similar amount of cast iron and steel. However, while the U.S. and Soviet populations were more comparable in 1940, Germany's population was around 70 million, which was 100 million fewer than the USSR; therefore the difference in per capita output was even higher in Germany than what is shown in the graph.

Graph and download economic data for Not in Labor Force - Veterans, Vietnam-Era and Earlier Wartime Periods, 18 Years and over, Men (LNU05073765) from Sep 2008 to Jul 2025 about korean war, Vietnam Era, World War, 18 years +, veterans, males, labor force, labor, household survey, and USA.