Belgium scores highly on international productivity rankings, which compare GDP (converted to USD after adjusting for purchasing power parity) to hours worked by the workforce. But results can be deceiving. Amcham Belgium writes:
Although Belgium has a high productivity score, it might not be all good news. Firstly, the results could be influenced by the fact that only 34.5% of its employable population aged 55 to 65 are actually working ……… Secondly, Belgian salaries are on average 11% higher than those of neighboring countries (the Netherlands, Germany and France)…..
Belgium may rank high on GDP per hour worked but slips down the rankings when measured on GDP per capita because of its low labor participation rate which imposes a high social cost on the country. That is why it is important not to use just one measure when assessing productivity.
Read more at Belgium ranked as the 3rd most productive country in the world.
Colin Twiggs is a former investment banker with almost 40 years of experience in financial markets. He co-founded Incredible Charts and writes the popular Trading Diary and Patient Investor newsletters.
Using a top-down approach, Colin identifies key macro trends in the global economy before evaluating selected opportunities using a combination of fundamental and technical analysis.
Focusing on interest rates and financial market liquidity as primary drivers of the economic cycle, he warned of the 2008/2009 and 2020 bear markets well ahead of actual events.
He founded PVT Capital (AFSL No. 546090) in May 2023, which offers investment strategy and advice to wholesale clients.
Reblogged this on RD Revilo.
Anybody who has traveled in Europe in the last 20 years would be surprised by any data showing that Europeans work harder or are more productive than Americans. And the Europeans understand this too. Having lived in Germany in the early 1990’a I was consistently asked why Americans worked so hard. I usually answered some variance of maybe we have to. While things may have changed in the last 20 years, visits to Europe have convinced me that Europe has a long way to go to match US industrial productivity.
The welfare state undermines the work ethic.