Papua New Guinea - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in Papua New Guinea was 20.00 as of 2004. Its highest value over the past 44 years was 42.76 in 1971, while its lowest value was 13.13 in 1961.

Definition: Gross capital formation (formerly gross domestic investment) consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including schools, offices, hospitals, private residential dwellings, and commercial and industrial buildings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales, and "work in progress." According to the 1993 SNA, net acquisitions of valuables are also considered capital formation.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also:

Year Value
1960 13.41
1961 13.13
1962 13.21
1963 16.07
1964 19.11
1965 21.61
1966 22.40
1967 21.93
1968 21.72
1969 29.05
1970 41.60
1971 42.76
1972 27.83
1973 15.48
1974 17.42
1975 20.04
1976 18.65
1977 21.60
1978 22.62
1979 23.48
1980 25.21
1981 27.25
1982 32.16
1983 29.44
1984 27.00
1985 19.83
1986 19.74
1987 20.51
1988 27.21
1989 23.22
1990 24.44
1991 27.40
1992 23.30
1993 17.63
1994 21.37
1995 21.94
1996 22.75
1997 21.06
1998 17.91
1999 16.37
2000 21.89
2001 22.95
2002 21.19
2003 19.92
2004 20.00

Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on capital formation may be estimated from direct surveys of enterprises and administrative records or based on the commodity flow method using data from production, trade, and construction activities. The quality of data on government fixed capital formation depends on the quality of government accounting systems (which tend to be weak in developing countries). Measures of fixed capital formation by households and corporations - particularly capital outlays by small, unincorporated enterprises - are usually unreliable. Estimates of changes in inventories are rarely complete but usually include the most important activities or commodities. In some countries these estimates are derived as a composite residual along with household final consumption expenditure. According to national accounts conventions, adjustments should be made for appreciation of the value of inventory holdings due to price changes, but this is not always done. In highly inflationary economies this element can be substantial.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt Indicators

Sub-Topic: National accounts