30 Incredible facts and stats about the U.S. economy.

Give it away.

1. Since 2008, U.S. citizens have donated $19.1 million to our Treasury to help pay down the national debt.

2. The U.S.A and its citizens contributed $298 billion to charity in 2011, more than the GDP of all but 33 countries in the world.

Industry.

3. By dividing his net worth by his age, you can calculate that Bill Gates has made more than $100,000 every hour he’s been alive!

4. If you total the annual profits of the entire U.S. airline industry going back to 1948, you come up with - $32 billion.

5. In the Q1 of 2012, the number of Apple iPhones sold per day was greater than the number of babies born per day all over the world (402,000 phones vs. 300,00 babies.)

6. In New York City, one in seven crimes committed involves a stolen Apple product.

Our economy.

7. The IRS states that illegal tax evasion reduced government revenue by $450 billion in 2006, the last year calculated.  To put that in perspective, that’s the approximate annual price tag for Medicare.

8. The last time interest rates were this low, in the 1950’s, the following three decades saw Treasury bonds lose 40% of their value.

9. Since 1854, the average number of months between recessions in the United States is 42.  It’s been just about 42 months since out last recession.

10. Speaking of Apple, the company’s cash and investments are now equal to the GDP of Hungary and more than those of Iraq and Vietnam.

Retirement:

11. 46.1 % of Americans die with less than $10,000 in net assets.

12. About 36% of workers have $1,000 or less saved for retirement.  60% have less than $25,000, including savings, their home, and other assets.

13. The 100 biggest public pension funds have 1.2 trillion in unfunded liabilities. 

Wages and Savings:

14. The population of workers aged 55 and older is just about to surpass the workers aged 24-34 for the first time in U.S. history.

15. 50% of Americans do not have even 1 month’s income saved.

16. When asked, “Do you have 3 months emergency funds saved in case of illness, job loss, or other catastrophe,” 60% of people did not.

17. 57% of American households do not have a budget plan.

18. The average Canadian household is wealthier than the average U.S. household for the first time ever.

19. In 2011, 50 million Americans couldn’t afford to buy food at some point.  In June 2012 alone, 46.7 million Americans received food stamps.

Debt:

20. Credit card debt as a percentage of our Gross Domestic Product is at the lowest level in 20 years. 

21. As of Q3 in 2013, we have 391.24 million credit card accounts, down significantly from 457.64 million in Q3 of 2003.

Markets:

22. The S&P 500 gained 135% between March 2009 and January 2013, the period we called the “Great Recession.”  From 1996 to 2000, considered the greatest bull market in history, it gained exactly 135%.

23. Since 1928, the Dow Jones has jumped more than 10% in a single day eight times.  It’s declined more than 10% in a single day four times.  It’s gone up or down more than 5% in a single day 136 times.

24. Since March of 2009, when the U.S. markets hit rock bottom, more than $8 trillion of lost wealth has been regained.

25. Since 2011, 84% of actively managed U.S. stock funds failed to perform as well as the S&P 500. 

26. Over the past ten years, hedge fun managers unperformed the stock market AND inflation!

Education:

27. As of 2010, 44% of people earning only minimum wage had attended some college, up from 25% in 1979.

28. Last year, 53.6 % of bachelor-degree holders age 25 or under were jobless or unemployed, the highest number in 11 years.

Oil.

29. By 2012, the U.S. will surpass Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest oil-producer.

30. In 2012, U.S. domestic oil production grew more than any year in the history of the industry, which goes back to 1859.