America’s Economic Edge Grows as Europe Stagnates, Data Show
New Eurostat data reveal that the EU’s GDP per-capita has slipped from 76.5% of the United States in 2008 to just 50% in 2023, highlighting a widening transatlantic gap.
Recent Eurostat releases indicate a 0.4% increase in euro-area GDP, beating forecasts but concealing weak performance in the bloc’s three largest economies—Germany, France and Italy. This limited growth is portrayed as institutional sclerosis rather than genuine prosperity. In 2008 the EU’s GDP per capita stood at 76.5% of the United States; by 2023 it had fallen to just 50%.
France, once comparable to the 36th-wealthiest U.S. state in 2000, now ranks below Arkansas in per-capita output. The piece argues that the United States maintains its lead by allowing creative destruction, while Europe’s institutions hinder dynamic growth. The widening gap has implications for competitiveness and living standards on both sides of the Atlantic.
Why it matters
The growing economic divide reshapes trade, investment and standards of living between the United States and Europe.
In this story
