Mexico's growth spurt.

• Position: GRAPH: INTERNATIONAL

With its tech industry booming and factories churning out everything from automobiles to aerospace components, Mexico has attracted attention for its economic growth (see article, p. 10). In 2012, Mexico had the 14th-largest gross domestic product (GDP) in the world and saw greater GDP growth than the U.S. and many other top economies. GDP is the value of all goods and services produced in a country in a year. It is a key indicator of economic health. Financial experts predict that Mexico could have the world's fifth-largest GDP by 2050.

ANALYZE THE GRAPH

(1) Which country or countries on the graph had a greater increase in GDP in 2012 than Mexico?

a Japan

b China

c Australia

d all of the above

(2) According to the graph, France's GDP --in 2012.

a increased significantly

b was about the same as Germany's

c neither increased nor decreased

d fell to a record low

(3) At the end of 2012, Mexico's GDP was $1.2 trillion. If it increases by the same percentage in 2013 as it did in 2012, by about how much will it increase in 2013?

a $24.4 million

b $50.2 million

c $4.2 billion

d $46.8 billion

(4) You can infer that Turkey does not appear on the graph because--.

a its GDP was stagnant in 2012

b its GDP is not in the top 15 for 2012

c its GDP is under $1 billion

d its GDP growth in 2012 was less than 1 percent

(5) You can tell from the countries' positions on the graph that the U.S.'s 2012 GDP was--.

a greater than Mexico's

b less than China's

c about the same as Japan's

d about the same as India's

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

(1) What factors do you think might affect a country's GDP growth rate?

(2) What are some of the goods and services that make up the GDP of the U.S.? Based on what you read in the Mexico article, what are some of the goods and services that make up Mexico's...