Question

What does expenditure method try to measure about the flow of goods and services in an economy?

Answer 1

The expenditure method is a system for calculating gross domestic product (GDP) that combines consumption, investment, government spending and net exports. It is the most common way to estimate GDP, and it says everything that the private sector, including consumers and private firms, and government spend within the borders of a particular country, must add up to the total value of all finished goods and services produced over a certain period of time. This method produces nominal GDP, which must then be adjusted for inflation to result in the real GDP.

The expenditure method may be contrasted with the income approach for calculated GDP.

Expenditure is a reference to spending. Another word for spending is demand. The total spending, or demand, in the economy is known as aggregate demand. This is why the GDP formula is actually the same as the formula for calculating aggregate demand. Because of this, aggregate demand and expenditure GDP must fall or rise in tandem.

However, this similarity isn't technically always present in the real world—especially when looking at GDP over the long run. Short-run aggregate demand only measures total output for a single nominal price level, or the average of current prices across the entire spectrum of goods and services produced in the economy. Aggregate demand only equals GDP in the long run after adjusting for price level.

Answer 2

The expenditures approach says GDP = consumption + investment + government expenditure + exports – imports. The income approach sums the factor incomes to the factors of production. The output approach is also called the “net product” or “value added” approach.