Can an economy grow while the average citizen becomes poorer

[Zeusky]

To me i feel the financial stability of a country has little contribution to the welfare of a citizen, though there might be some positive outcome about that concerning job opportunities and all that, but I just have this feeling that someone can be in a developing country and also still be getting into debt and still get poorer. It might be due to some wrong choices or some wrong investments but not everyone would always be rich or would I say not everyone must be successful, I don't know if I'll say it's the rule of life as a whole, but it's something that's common. Some can even get the chance of hitting it big for a lifetime and still fumble the chance maybe due to unforseen circumstances or some misplaced priorities. Meanwhile some actually don't have the chance to make it big ever.

What's your take on this?

[slapper]

If the top few percent double their income and everyone else stays the same, does the country's GDP go up? Technically, yes. The problem with GDP is it's a single, massive number. If you take that number and divide it by the number of people in the country you get an average. People don't realize GDP per person is just an average, and averages hide a lot of things. Median wages could stay exactly the same, and if prices for food and rent increase, workers would be worse off while the few percent at the top get twice as much pay.

On your "wrong choices" point I'd differ. The fact that land and shares and businesses have accrued growth while workers have sold their labor hours for the remainder may account for stagnant wages in the US despite decades of rising productivity. No one made a bad investment there. The upside just collected elsewhere.

In developing countries growth gets localized to a few elite industries (telecom, oil, etc.) in the capital while everybody else lives with higher prices but unchanged wages. Harari argues something similar about farming. Agriculture made humans way richer as a species (allowing for larger populations, cities, kings, etc). But for the average farmer, life got harder; they worked longer, ate less and fell ill more often than the foragers they replaced. A different era, but inequality nonetheless.

Bad timing and sheer bad luck are real, like you said. But when millions of individuals are getting poorer at once, this problem, while personal, is also systemic. It has more to do with distribution than bad choices. Distribution is the result of conscious policies regarding taxes, wages, and who qualifies for cheap loans.

[Jaycoinz]

Yeah the economy of a country can grow spontaneous over a given period of time and still yet the average citizen can be living below the standard, economic growth of a country is measured in the GDP of that country and a lot of factors can contribute to the citizens being whilst the economy shows a growth by certain percentage and the most common factor is inflation, this situation calls for the citizens minimum wage not meeting the standard set by big businesses, the business will show high price, boosting the economic figure whilst the citizens suffer

[Rruchi man]

To me i feel the financial stability of a country has little contribution to the welfare of a citizen, tho there might be some positive outcome about that concerning job opportunities and all that, but I just have this feeling that someone can be in a developing country and also still be getting into debt and still get poorer.

Yes, the fact that you are in a country that is even developed and financially stable does not mean you automatically will be doing well. You will do well financially when you make the effort because there is already a system that supports it.

It might be due to some wrong choices or some wrong investments but not everyone would always be rich

It may not just be the wrong choices or wrong investments; the right choices made at the wrong time could also be a cause. Proactiveness is important to take advantage of opportunities; unfortunately, many people, even in developed countries, lack this, hence the reason they are still poor even in a flourishing system.

[Lucano]

Yes, in developing countries, the state's contribution to the welfare of its people does not have a direct impact. If we refer to success elsewhere, it seems the same. It is the people who primarily build their respective economies, with the state's contribution merely providing the means and facilities. Even in developed countries like here, inflationary pressures severely depress the people's economy.

[Obulis]

Life and it's wonders. Thai matter is understandable on a national level but let's even start with the family. some men son's and daughters will become poor few years after the death of the rich parent(s).  Some rich men children are poor but are covered by their fathers or parents source. Some children don't have what it takes to sustain what their parents will leave behind and at present they're as poor as (intellectually, financially and otherwise) as others whose parents and/or siblings are not well to do. indeed that a family is well to do doesn't mean all the children in the family understands and are keeping up to the family status quo. But in all that, the stand of the family has direct and indirect impacts on the wellbeing of the family members.
I guess that is what it's with a nation, that a nation is doing well doesn't mean her citizens are ready to keep up to doing well but the present stand of a nation has direct and indirect impacts on the citizens.

[Berry2d]

Yeah the economy of a country can grow spontaneous over a given period of time and still yet the average citizen can be living below the standard, economic growth of a country is measured in the GDP of that country and a lot of factors can contribute to the citizens being whilst the economy shows a growth by certain percentage and the most common factor is inflation, this situation calls for the citizens minimum wage not meeting the standard set by big businesses, the business will show high price, boosting the economic figure whilst the citizens suffer

One major reason why a poor economy affects average citizens is the standard of living, an imbalance economic situation contributes to an uncontrollable cost of commodities and makes life very difficult for the poor masses.
But when a country has a balanced economic situation the prices of commodities become moderate and survival becomes very easy for all including the poor masses. So based on your opinion, I will say a good economic situation will help propel average citizens into a good standard of living.  Once the economy is balanced,  the prices of commodities becomes normal and the income of citizens will be useful.

[Obari]

To me i feel the financial stability of a country has little contribution to the welfare of a citizen, tho there might be some positive outcome about that concerning job opportunities and all that, but I just have this feeling that someone can be in a developing country and also still be getting into debt and still get poorer. It might be due to some wrong choices or some wrong investments but not everyone would always be rich or would I say not everyone must be successful, I don't know if I'll say it's the rule of life as a whole, but it's something that's common. Some can even get the chance of hitting it big for a lifetime and still fumble the chance maybe due to unforseen circumstances or some misplaced priorities. Meanwhile some actually don't have the chance to make it big ever.

What's your take on this?

There are countries that have far more better standard of living compared to others and you'll get to find citizens from other counties migrating to such countries because of the availability of better opportunities in those counties which is fueled by the government in most cases and you'll agree with me that, the citizens of such countries wouldn't be on same level with a citizen of a country who's government is constantly failing them and wether we like it or not, the government has a whole lot of roles to play in the overall wellbeing of its people.

[Silverstonez]

If the government is not doing enough for the people by providing them with jobs opportunities, they will get poorer. From my perspective, the government has a very big role to play in the lives of the people.
I agree with you that someone can live in a developed country and still be poor, but those living in a developed countries don’t suffer like those who come from underdeveloped countries. Some people are suffering because they didn’t utilized their resources properly, they were busy enjoying their lives without thinking about the future.

[BTC FutureKing]

The average citizen faces difficulties in every situation whether the economy is developing or not because they get less in everything compared to other citizens be it salaries opportunities to improve their lives educational institution medical assistance and other things that the average citizen gets less.Yes if the economy develops then the average citizen has the right to get a chance to improve their lives because they face many difficulties to meet their daily expenses but the government does not think about their lives due to which the lives of their families are ordinary like theirs.The government should provide them with maximum facilities and better opportunities so that they can learn to improve themselves with hard work and effort.

[püsür]

This isn’t something that only happens in developing countries. It can happen—and does happen—in developed countries too. Furthermore, in a wealthy European country—one of the world’s most developed nations—whilst the economy was growing, the incomes of the average citizen did not rise by the same proportion, and they did not become wealthier. Yet companies made incredible profits and grew richer. The country may appear to have grown richer overall, but if the average citizen does not feel this wealth in their pocket, it loses much of its significance. It is, of course, good for a country when its companies grow richer, but the public must also feel the benefits of this. Ordinary people in wealthy countries are not always in a very good position.

[Spaceman1000$]

To me i feel the financial stability of a country has little contribution to the welfare of a citizen, tho there might be some positive outcome about that concerning job opportunities and all that, but I just have this feeling that someone can be in a developing country and also still be getting into debt and still get poorer. It might be due to some wrong choices or some wrong investments but not everyone would always be rich or would I say not everyone must be successful, I don't know if I'll say it's the rule of life as a whole, but it's something that's common. Some can even get the chance of hitting it big for a lifetime and still fumble the chance maybe due to unforseen circumstances or some misplaced priorities. Meanwhile some actually don't have the chance to make it big ever.

What's your take on this?

How do you even say a country is economically growing when the financial stability of the citizens are stuffled, before you will say an economy is growing the average person in that society needs to be living a stable financial life, and this is why we calculate financial stability of most countries in respect to their GDP per capita, because the individual growth of a country is very essential. The country's financial minister cannot be quoting figures of financial growth while people are living in mystery.

[Iroh]

To answer your question, Yes, an economy of a country can seemingly grow while the standard of living of the average citizen remains the same or decreases.
The economy is more or less measured by how much the country can generate in a specific amount of time. A country can experience a massive growth in their economy but sadly, the average citizen wouldn't notice any growth in his everyday life. The perfect way the average citizen can notice an economic growth is if the government prioritizes social/public welfare and perhaps job creation to cater to the growing number of applicants in the labor market.

People fall into debt and get poor everywhere as It happens in both developing and developed nations. Personal choices as well as deeply unfavorable policies and conditions can cause one to lose money despite economic growth.
There are no rules to this life. That's why somone, born into the lowest echelon in the society can turn out to be a national hero.

[AYOBA]

If the government is not doing enough for the people by providing them with jobs opportunities, they will get poorer. From my perspective, the government has a very big role to play in the lives of the people.
I agree with you that someone can live in a developed country and still be poor, but those living in a developed countries don’t suffer like those who come from underdeveloped countries. Some people are suffering because they didn’t utilized their resources properly, they were busy enjoying their lives without thinking about the future.

Most of the government don’t play the best role of their power to protect live and properties, and this is one of the reasons why insecurity is increasing every blessing day without control, because those who suppose find situations and make the country to be better are behind the scenes. How can we expect the country to develop? When the leaders are behind the scenes in order to destroy the country.

Problem with the people that come from developing countries and at the end of day they suffering is because they only rely on what is in their thinking that it will last forever, that’s why most of them don’t think about their future. Because whatever we achieve in life is a temporary.

[Lembo69]

This isn’t something that only happens in developing countries. It can happen—and does happen—in developed countries too. Furthermore, in a wealthy European country—one of the world’s most developed nations—whilst the economy was growing, the incomes of the average citizen did not rise by the same proportion, and they did not become wealthier. Yet companies made incredible profits and grew richer. The country may appear to have grown richer overall, but if the average citizen does not feel this wealth in their pocket, it loses much of its significance. It is, of course, good for a country when its companies grow richer, but the public must also feel the benefits of this. Ordinary people in wealthy countries are not always in a very good position.

Yes, it is true that not only the economy of a country will develop, but its citizens will also have to enjoy its benefits. Because if companies increase their profits, the country will develop further, but if the general public cannot enjoy it, then such economic development is the development of the country, not the citizens. Even if the average citizen of a country is poor, the profits of that country can increase through companies, but what benefit do the citizens get from it? I don't think the citizens enjoy any benefit from it. It is not that the citizens will be well off only if the country develops, but every citizen must have a job.Only then will the economy become stronger and every citizen will help take the country forward and build a more developed nation.

[adultcrypto]

A person can be in a country with robust economy yet still struggling to survive, it happens because there is hardly any nation on earth where the poor does not exist. The average citizens may be able to have their basic needs met but some proportion of the population can still be living in serious debt and poverty even when the economy is thriving well. US is the biggest economy in the world yet in US there are so many homeless people, a lot of people are heavily indebted and all manners of crimes are being committed by people who could not afford decent meals.

[angrybirdy]

To me i feel the financial stability of a country has little contribution to the welfare of a citizen, tho there might be some positive outcome about that concerning job opportunities and all that, but I just have this feeling that someone can be in a developing country and also still be getting into debt and still get poorer. It might be due to some wrong choices or some wrong investments but not everyone would always be rich or would I say not everyone must be successful, I don't know if I'll say it's the rule of life as a whole, but it's something that's common. Some can even get the chance of hitting it big for a lifetime and still fumble the chance maybe due to unforseen circumstances or some misplaced priorities. Meanwhile some actually don't have the chance to make it big ever.

What's your take on this?

How do you even say a country is economically growing when the financial stability of the citizens are stuffled, before you will say an economy is growing the average person in that society needs to be living a stable financial life, and this is why we calculate financial stability of most countries in respect to their GDP per capita, because the individual growth of a country is very essential. The country's financial minister cannot be quoting figures of financial growth while people are living in mystery.

I do agree that the growth of an economy should not solely be determined using numbers. what will be the significance of having a good GDP when the vast majority of the population is still battling to meet their needs and paying day to day bills and expenses??? as far as i concerned, the development of any countries should be seen through the day-to-day experiences of its people. their citizens should be feeling the effect of the growth of the economy through job opportunities, decent salary offers, low living expenses, security and being enjoyed to have a work - life balances...  the government can come up with all sorts of economic statistics, but all that will be of no meaning if the citizenry does not feel them.

[Crypto_Timothy]

What's your take on this?

Can an economy grow while the average citizen becomes poorer? I dont think so and i say this because i know its proportional, in the sense that if the economy of a country is progressing, it means a few factors are also moving in a positive factor, like say the production of goods locally is booming and cost of things are getting cheaper or rather light, now if these are the symptoms of an economy growing, then i just fail to see how an average person would be getting poorer in such conditions unless of course with wrong decision making and misplaced priorities but asides that, if the economy is growing, i see the average citizen benefitting heavily from that.

And yes, it is very much possible to be in a developed country and still be in debts and chasing loans up and down, infact in most of these developed countries they give out student loans and alot of cooperate loans so someone is constantly in debt and they are making money off it because even till today, those companies still exist, so obviously profit is being made.

[WillyAp]

consumers drive the economy.
But politicians won't get it. They believe everyone is part of the stock exchange.

[alani123]

The example of my country, Greece has tought us that people generally becoming poorer and lowering their purchasing power has long lasting consequences.

See the median wage in Greece, it never recovered from the financial crisis. The parties who lend Greece to save it from bankruptcy demanded greece enact very strict austerity measures so they will give the rest of the money, but as a result the economy has kept doing worse than before.

Not letting money flow to the working people has catastrophic results and even the world's elite will realise this sooner or later. I'm not sure what it will take for this to happen, but it's certainly bound to happen.