Why covid-19 did not harm rich economies as badly as first thought
Britain and Italy have revised data for GDP during the pandemic
MODERN ECONOMIC statistics are best thought of as a work in progress. As new information becomes available to national statistics offices they update and revise previously published numbers. The picture of the economy comes into focus only slowly, more like an old-fashioned polaroid than a snap on a modern smartphone. Revisions of older data are part and parcel of the process and rarely make the headlines. But in the past two months revisions in Britain and Italy have come close to rewriting recent economic history. What happened?
From the November 11th 2023 edition
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