North America Economic Forecast

North America has an economy that consists of 23 sovereign states, as well as 15 dependent territories. Within North America are two countries where people primarily speak English to include the United States and Canada. In addition, these two countries are noted as being the richest, as well as the most developed not just in North America but also the entire world. North America has a strong economy although it was hit hard by the recent global financial crisis.

North America has an economy that consists of 23 sovereign states, as well as 15 dependent territories. Within North America are two countries where people primarily speak English to include the United States and Canada. In addition, these two countries are noted as being the richest, as well as the most developed not just in North America but also the entire world. North America has a strong economy although it was hit hard by the recent global financial crisis. For trade, the North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is designed to eliminate tariffs on goods traded between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Today, North American has its share of challenges but new programs, reforms, and other opportunities are helping with economic recovery.

North America GDP Forecast

In North America, the economy depends on several sectors to include agriculture, manufacturing, service, and banking/investing primarily. Based on how well each of these sectors does along with other data, experts have the ability to forecast numbers for the North America GDP (Gross Domestic Product, Current Prices, US Dollars). For the agriculture sector, grain is a huge part of crop growing although numerous tropical fruits and vegetables are also grown in Mexico. Along with foods, North America has a strong animal base. The manufacturing sector has enjoyed dramatic growth with North America now considered one of the strongest nations. With service, this includes tourism among other things, providing great job opportunities. Then with banking and investing, the sector is strong but starting to grow. In looking at the GDP in North America for PPP, 2006 reported $15.560 trillion in US dollars. For GDP currency, numbers were reported at $11.865 trillion.

North America Unemployment Forecast

The North America population is estimated at almost 500 million people and of those, 40% rank in the top 10% for income. In fact, North America has approximately 3.2 million people who are deemed true millionaires. While North America has incredible options for work and sectors are growing, the North America unemployment rate is still high at 10%. Even so, governments are working hard to cut budget deficits and create more jobs to bring the number down.

North America Inflation Rate Forecast

As far as the North America inflation rate, numbers experienced a shift from minus 0.2% in October of 2009 to a positive 1.8%. Since February of that same year, this was the first time the inflation rate improved. Experts believe that as the economy begins to heal from the global financial crisis, the inflation numbers for the United States will only continue to improve. Then for Canada, numbers for 2009 showed the yearly inflation rate ended at 0.8%, which was a change from earlier numbers of 0.1%. Because of this change, it was the first time in a five-month period to see improvement. Overall, experts do not see or expect any major occurrences regarding the inflation rate although some caution is being displayed knowing recovery from the crisis is still in infancy.

North America Current Account Balance Forecast

Another important aspect of the economy is the North America current account balance. Currently, the account deficit is starting to widen for the third month in a row, specific to the United States. Experts believe this is due to the European debt crisis, as well as increased pricing in oil. In fact, during the first quarter of 2010 the deficit increased to $109 billion, up from $100.0 billion at year-end 2009. Another change seen was with Foreign Direct Investment. Again, using the United States as an example, this increased to $47.3 billion during the first four months of 2010, up from numbers reported at the end of 2009 of $41.5 billion. Overall, the current account balance is being predicted to rise to as high as $430 billion. Compared to 2009, that shows a dramatic increase. Even so, when compared to the $668.9 billion reported in 2008, it is easy to see that the North America economy is heading in the right direction.