GNP (Gross National Product)
The total value of newly produced products and services produced in a year by a country’s companies (including profits from capital held abroad). Transactions in existing goods, such as second-hand cars, are not included, as these do not involve the production of new goods.
Robert Kennedy once said of GNP (although he could just as well have said it of GDP): “Gross National Product measures neither the health of our children, the quality of their education, nor the joy of their play. It measures neither the beauty of our poetry, nor the strength of our marriages. It is indifferent to the decency of our factories and the safety of our streets alike. It measures neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our wit nor our courage, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything in short, except that which makes life worth living. It can tell us everything about our country, except those things that make us proud to be a part of it.” 2