We say relative performance because there is some debate about the extent to which the us economy really is outperforming that of other industrialized nations, including Canada. As The Economist pointed out, us economic performance looks much less impressive if one takes a slightly longer-term perspective. For example, the United States has been equaled or bettered by Germany on gdp growth, gdp per capita growth and productivity growth over the last 10 years. As Judith Maxwell wrote in The Globe and Mail , the impressive aggregate numbers for the United States hide the fact that 80 percent of Americans are experiencing more work and less pay. As well, other countries seem able to achieve high rates of productivity growth without rising income inequality.
Models come and go.
The Swedish model, with its generous social programs supported by high taxes, was much admired in the 1970s. In the 1980s, Japan seemed destined to overtake the us as the world s leading economy. It is unclear to what extent us economic success can be attributed to the us economic model, as opposed to other factors such as its industrial structure. Similarly, there is no consensus about how well or poorly Canada is doing relative to the United States. Indeed, there is some disagreement about how productivity and productivity growth compare between the two countries.