How big is the shadow economy?

To attach some quick figures, at the end of 2017, U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) was around $17.3 trillion. So the shadow economy is approximated to be around 11 to 12 percent of overall economic activity. Total federal debt was around 20.5 trillion, over 100 percent of GDP.

How is shadow economy measured?

In essence, GDP measured using the income approach is made up of personal income (wages) and corporate income (business profits). Therefore, the shadow economy can be measured as the sum of deliberately concealed wages (including wages paid to unregistered workers) and unreported business profits.

What is Thailand’s major economy?

Thailand, Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, has grown in the past generation or two from an undeveloped country to what the World Bank calls a “middle-income” country. Its three main economic sectors are agriculture, manufacturing, and services.

Which country has biggest underground economy?

The average size of the shadow economy of the 158 countries over 1991 to 2015 is 31.9 percent. The largest ones are Zimbabwe with 60.6 percent, and Bolivia with 62.3 percent of GDP. The lowest ones are Austria with 8.9 percent, and Switzerland with 7.2 percent.

What is the shadow economy?

What Is the Shadow Economy? Also called the underground, informal, or parallel economy, the shadow economy includes not only illegal activities but also unreported income from the production of legal goods and services, either from monetary or barter transactions.

What are the main factors influencing the shadow economy?

Key findings High taxes and social security contributions and heavy regulation are the main drivers of the shadow economy. Resources not being used in the official economy can be used in the shadow economy to increase overall supply of goods and services.

What is Thailand’s biggest industry?

manufacturing sector
The manufacturing sector constitutes Thailand’s main industry, producing a wide variety of goods such as textiles and garments, plastics, footwear, electronics, integrated circuits, computers and components, automobiles and parts, and cement.

What is shadow economy?

What is the average size of the shadow economy?

The average size of the shadow economy of the 158 countries over 1991 to 2015 is 31.9 percent. The largest ones are Zimbabwe with 60.6 percent, and Bolivia with 62.3 percent of GDP. The lowest ones are Austria with 8.9 percent, and Switzerland with 7.2 percent.

What is the actual size of Thailand’s economy?

In 2017 Thailand’s nominal GDP was $455.37 billion and $1.233 trillion at purchasing power parity. The per capita GDP for that year was $6,729 and $18,943 ppp. Therefore if the shadow economy is counted the “actual size” of the economy should be 40\% bigger.

Which country has the largest shadow economy in Africa?

According to a survey conducted in 1998–99 in Africa, Nigeria and Egypt had the largest shadow economies, equivalent to 77 percent and 69 percent of GDP, respectively; South Africa, by contrast, had a shadow economy of only 11 percent of GDP.

How big is the shadow economy in Greece?

According to a new study published by the Institute for Applied Economic Research at the University of Tübingen in Germany (IAW), the Greek shadow economy is estimated to average 21.5 percent of GDP. Its fellow southern European states of Italy and Spain also have shadow economies…