Panama - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in Panama was 24.06 as of 2020. Its highest value over the past 60 years was 44.31 in 2014, while its lowest value was 7.73 in 1989.

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 21.31
1961 24.92
1962 25.61
1963 25.65
1964 22.24
1965 22.94
1966 28.58
1967 27.49
1968 29.12
1969 30.74
1970 34.43
1971 37.57
1972 39.36
1973 41.53
1974 41.58
1975 38.12
1976 39.12
1977 29.34
1978 32.87
1979 34.71
1980 35.31
1981 35.63
1982 33.81
1983 22.47
1984 18.63
1985 19.12
1986 21.65
1987 23.09
1988 9.44
1989 7.73
1990 21.14
1991 24.11
1992 29.76
1993 31.06
1994 33.68
1995 38.04
1996 40.41
1997 38.81
1998 41.14
1999 38.99
2000 36.49
2001 26.66
2002 23.81
2003 28.71
2004 28.27
2005 27.75
2006 29.42
2007 36.04
2008 42.33
2009 31.43
2010 38.21
2011 38.64
2012 43.69
2013 44.01
2014 44.31
2015 42.76
2016 40.50
2017 41.73
2018 41.48
2019 38.30
2020 24.06

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