Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

GDP is the total dollar value of all goods and services produced within a country over a given period, and it is the broadest single measure of economic size and growth. Quarterly GDP growth (or contraction) is the headline number used to describe whether the economy is expanding, stalling, or shrinking.

GDP growth and stock returns are related but not tightly linked in the short run, since markets price expectations about future growth well before the GDP report confirms or denies them. A weak GDP print can still coincide with a stock rally if it comes in better than the market had already feared.