Britain: An official handbook > 1956

THE NATIONAL ECONOMY
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Prospects
The United Kingdom’s main economic problems remain those of paying its way
abroad and restraining the upward trend of prices. Its share in world exports of
manufactures reached a peak in 1950 at 26 per cent. Since then, with the recovery
of Germany and Japan, it has fallen back to its pre-war share of about one-fifth.
Success or failure in maintaining the increase in the standard of living will depend
very largely on keeping a large enough share of world exports of manufactures to
finance the import bill.
THE NATIONAL INCOME 1948-54
Size and Source
In a comparison of national income per head in different countries (which
provides a very approximate measure of living standards) the United Kingdom
ranks in the second group, together with Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland,
Australia, and New Zealand, below only the United States and Canada. From 1948
t° I954 the gross national product (which is a measure of the total goods and services
produced) is estimated to have risen in real terms at a rate of about 3 per cent a year:
in I954 it was million at current prices and (with allowance made for
price changes) was 20 per cent higher than in 1948.
The predominance of industry in the United Kingdom economy is brought out
in Table 8. In 1948-54 manufacturing, mining and building were responsible for
well over two-fifths of the gross domestic product; agriculture provided 6 per cent.
TABLE 8
Percentage Contribution to the Total Output of Goods
and Services (Gross Domestic Product)
(1948-54 averages)
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
Mining and quarrying . .
Manufacturing . .
Building and contracting
Gas, electricity and water
Transport and communications
Distributive trades
Insurance, banking and finance
Public administration and defence
Public health and educational services
Other
%
6
4
37
6
2
8
13
3
6
3
12
100
To these supplies from home production, imports added, on average, rather
more than one-fifth.
Distribution
Out of the total supply of goods and services rather over a half, on average, has
been going into personal consumption, and a fifth into exports. Investment—in