World GNP ranking: a game

I realized fb that you hadn't given us all the answers. Since I had neither looked this up, nor still quite had it straight in my mind from all your clues, I thought I'd try again. However, this has become a brain-strain; PiffkaIII is my last gasp. :wink: It was nice of Nimh to have so many correct.

United States of America
Bermuda
Norway
Canada
Ireland
Japan
Australia
United Kingdom
Germany
Spain
Saudi Arabia
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Taiwan
Mexico
Russia
Brazil
World Average
Ukraine
Turkey
China
India
Colombia
Siria
Cuba
North Korea
Nigeria
Angola
Afghanistan
Gaza Strip

Piffka III is approaching perfection (correct spots on Italics)

United States of America
Bermuda
Norway
Canada
Ireland
Japan
Australia
United Kingdom
Germany (this should be fixed up in a jiffy)
Spain
Saudi Arabia
Czech Republic
Slovakia
Taiwan
Mexico
Russia
Brazil
World Average
Ukraine
Turkey
China
India
Colombia
Siria (change the order on these 8)
Cuba
North Korea
Nigeria
Angola (change the order on these 3)
Afghanistan
Gaza Strip

One note: I think Germany is in big economic trouble. Their unemployment rate is over ten percent, and the value of the dollar vs the Euro is slipping fast, which means less exports for Germany. American products become more competitive in the European market. I see Germany dropping a few notches on this list. c.i.

Ehm, ehm, and SLovakia has recently overtook the Czech Republic! But not long ago enough to make it into the report... just felt a need to brag....

I just had a hinch you'd come up with something like that when I chose both countries

Well - <sniff> - at least you are in his list ... ;-)

Once more unto the breach...

United States of America
Bermuda
Norway
Canada
Ireland
Japan
Australia
Germany
United Kingdom
Spain
Taiwan
Slovakia --- in order of Dagmaraka's recent birthday!
Czech Republic
Saudi Arabia
Mexico
Russia
World Average
Brazil
Turkey
Ukraine
Colombia
China
Siria
India
Cuba
North Korea
Angola
Nigeria

Afghanistan
Gaza Strip

Oy, you got two Angola's, that's not fair!

<giggles>

heee, ooops, well that'll really screw up my results. I'll fix the last.

Almost there (correct position in italics):

United States of America
Bermuda
Norway
Canada
Ireland
Japan
Australia
Germany
United Kingdom
Spain
Taiwan
Slovakia --- in order of Dagmaraka's recent birthday!
Czech Republic
Saudi Arabia
Mexico
Russia
World Average
Brazil
Turkey
Ukraine
Colombia
China
Siria
India
Cuba
North Korea
Angola
Nigeria
Afghanistan
Gaza Strip

And here's the link:

http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/fields/2004.html

Ahhh. Thanks. IT is very interesting to see these figures.

And for Nimh, the Netherlands at $26,900, ranks just below Australia at $27,000.

I only have one question: How did they determine the "per capita income?" c.i.

GDP/population

The purchasing power parity is the harder trick, since prices differ in different countries, specially prices for services, as a well-traveled man can notice.
This means that equivalent incomes -in terms of dollars- are not equivalent in terms of purchasing power.

fbaezer, Your conclusion about 'purchasing' power is right on target. The middle class income in Cape Town, South Africa, is about US$10,000. Americans traveling to South Africa will find real bargains. A rock lobster dinner with two bottles of red wine cost about $20. A beautiful home with immaculate garden costs about $80,000. In other words, the middle class income of South Africa at $10,000 is probably equivalent to about $75,000 in the US. c.i.

Yes, and p.p.p. means that Country A, with slightly lower income but much lower prices is higher on the list than Country B, with slightly higher income but much higher prices.

Now, the 1 / 7.5 ratio seems somewhat exagerated!

fbaezer, Tis true, only if one looks at the totality of the US. In Silicon Valley where I live, the 'average' salary is $75,000/year. c.i.

One of the reasons why I posted this game is that I have the feeling many people on the First World (and Americans, specially), tend to put the whole Third World in a single basket.

One leading US newspaper, during the bickering and negotiating days in the Un Security Council, previous to the Iraq war, wrote that Chile was "very poor ". The citizen of that Andean country are, as an average, as rich as Saudis (and I would say they live better, since income is not distributed so unevenly).

The income of the average Mexican is about one fourth of the income of the average American... this explains the migration flow towards the US. And yet, the income of the average Guatemalan is one half, and Honduran or Salvadorean income is one third of the average Mexican income... this explains the migration to both Mexico and the US by the Central Americans. (We are a sandwich: getting expelled in the North, expelling others in the South).

Eastern Europe is in a slightly better economical shape than Latin America, but there, too, you can find enormous differences. Hungarians and former Czecholosvakians are doing well, but others, like Ukraine, Serbia, Rumania and Bulgaria are lagging.

Similar differences are to be found in Africa and Asia.

It should be noted that famous oil exporting countries are not that rich, as an average. It just happens that some subjects of those realms are inmensely rich.

fbaezer, Good point: It increased our knowledge about "per capita income" and the diverse environments in which $25,000 in one country doesn't necessarily equate to $25,000 in another - nor in different areas of the same country. It's always good to be knowledgeable about financial matters, because so many of us have misconceptions about money. c.i.

Re: World GNP ranking: a game