UTULEI, AMERICAN SAMOA (May 10, 2010) Today, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is releasing its first set of estimates of the major components of gross domestic product (GDP) for American Samoa.¹

Objectively gauging changes in economic activity is difficult in the absence of comprehensive economic metrics, such as the GDP. Until now, a framework did not exist to estimate the GDP of American Samoa. The Statistical Improvement Program, funded by the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) of the U.S. Department of the Interior, has made it possible for BEA to develop formal methodologies for measuring the GDP of American Samoa.

On May 5, 2010, BEA released estimates of total GDP for American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The estimates for American Samoa showed that from 2002 to 2007, real GDP -- GDP adjusted to remove price changes -- grew at an average annual rate of 0.4 percent.² (For comparison, the average annual growth rate for the United States (excluding the territories) was 2.8 percent over this period.)

The estimates released today supplement the estimates of total GDP for American Samoa that were released last week. The accompanying tables present estimates for the major components of GDP, including consumer spending, private fixed investment, private inventory investment, net exports, and government spending.³ Also included in this release are estimates of the major components of gross domestic income.

The estimates of the major components of GDP highlight the impact that the tuna canning industry had on American Samoa’s economic growth over the period 2002 to 2007. Cannery exports, which represent more than 90 percent of total exports of goods and services, accounted for most of the fluctuations in the year-to-year growth rates of real GDP. The volatility in the annual growth rates of real GDP also reflected changes in cannery imports, including imports of both raw tuna for canning and aluminum plates used to produce cans.

In constructing the estimates for American Samoa, BEA used methodologies consistent with the methods used to estimate U.S. GDP. Information from the Economic Census of Island Areas was used to establish levels of GDP for the years 2002 and 2007. Annual series were then developed and used to estimate GDP for the intervening years. Because American Samoa is not included in most of the major surveys used by BEA to estimate U.S. GDP, the support of government leaders in American Samoa and the assistance provided by the American Samoa Department of Commerce were critical to the successful production of the estimates presented in this release.

Moving forward, the agreement between OIA and BEA will extend and improve the estimates of GDP for American Samoa. BEA currently plans to release estimates for both 2008 and 2009 in the spring of 2011.

¹ These estimates are based on limited source data and are subject to revision.

² Summary GDP statistics for American Samoa are presented on page 3 of this news release.

³ Consumer spending refers to personal consumption expenditures, inventory investment refers to change in private inventories, and government spending refers to government consumption expenditures and gross investment.

American Samoa

From 2002 to 2007, real GDP of American Samoa increased at an average annual rate of 0.4 percent. The annual growth rates of real GDP ranged from -2.9 percent to +2.1 percent. The volatility in the growth rates of real GDP was primarily accounted for by changes in the exports of canned tuna. The tuna canning industry was the largest private employer in American Samoa during this period.

From 2002 to 2007, the population of American Samoa increased at an average annual rate of 2.3 percent, and real GDP per capita decreased at an average annual rate of 1.9 percent.