On the presidential campaign trail, the economy is one of the big issues that the candidates touch upon during their speeches.  One of the drivers of economic measurement is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  One presidential candidate says that the most recent GDP number is cause for economic concern, if not alarm.

On Tuesday, June 16th, billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump announced his candidacy for President in 2016.  During his speech, Trump said this about the GDP:

"The last quarter, it was just announced, our gross domestic product … was below zero. Who ever heard of this? It's never below zero."

Our partners at PolitiFact Florida took a closer look at Trump's claim to see if it was accurate.  PolitiFact reporter Joshua Gillin says that Trump's statement rates PANTS ON FIRE on the Truth-O-Meter.  Gillin says that Trump portrayed the GDP completely wrong in his claim.

"We're talking about the Gross Domestic Product, and the GDP is the amount of all economic activity in the United States per quarter," said Gillin.  "Last quarter, it dropped by about 0.7 percent.  That number may change because these numbers are usually revised once more data comes in.  The percentage indicated by the GDP represents growth, and yes, there can be a zero or even a negative number.  When that happens, we're talking about contraction of the economy, and how much it has shrunk.  Trump's 'zero' comment, interpreted literally, would mean that there's no economic activity at all, which is, of course, not the case."

Gillin said that a negative GDP number is actually not the rarity that Trump believes it is.  "We looked up data for the last 68 years," said Gillin.  "During that time, there have been 42 quarters where there has been 'negative growth,' meaning that the economy was shrinking instead of expanding or growing."

Because Trump did not fully explain what he was referring to when he threw out the "below zero" comment, his claim is rated PANTS ON FIRE by PolitiFact's Truth-O-Meter.

 

SOURCES: Is the GDP below zero?