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Hos and blows: the new Italian GDP calculation
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2014 May 27, 11:59am 1,252 views 0 comments
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Italy to include sex and drugs in GDP
The mafia has long been one of Italy's biggest businesses and now, it's about to get some credit for it. This is GDP — served Italian style. Italy is changing how it calculates its gross domestic product, a measurement of the overall economy, to include black market activity — everything from prostitution to illegal drug sales to smuggling and arms trafficking. Economists predict illegal sales will add 1.3 percentage points to GDP this year. Hey, it's one way to boost growth. It could also backfire. After the criticism Italy received for former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's indiscretions and fraud conviction, the country isn't improving its image.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/05/27/italy-drugs-prostitution-economy-gdp/9631573/