LATINOS POWER THE U.S. ECONOMY WITH A $2.13 TRILLION GDP
New Study from The Latino Donor Collaborative Finds the American Hispanic Population Have Seventh Largest Global GDP, Driving U.S. Workforce and Economic Growth
LOS ANGELES (Wednesday, June 28) — Today, the Latino Donor Collaborative (LDC) released Latino Gross Domestic Product Report: Quantifying the Impact of American Hispanic Economic Growth, a study that for the first time ever calculates the full Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the American Latino population. At $2.13 trillion, the estimated U.S. Latino GDP is the seventh largest GDP in the world, with American Latinos driving growth of the U.S. workforce and economy.
Contrary to political rhetoric and many popular representations of Latinos, the study finds:
- Latinos Contribute to the U.S. Economy — A Lot: At $2.13 trillion, the U.S. Latino GDP is the seventh largest GDP in the world and larger than that of India, Italy, Brazil, or Canada. The Latino GDP would trail only the U.S., China, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France.
- Latinos are the Major Component of Growth of the U.S. Workforce: While the non-Latino workforce shrank by about 4,000 workers between 2010 and 2015, the Latino workforce grew by nearly 2.5 million, powering an overall increase of 2.4 million in the workforce age 25-64.
- Latinos Greatly Outperform Expectations in Driving U.S. Economic Growth: At 2.9% the Latino Compound Annual Growth Rate of GDP between 2010 and 2015 (CGAR) was the third highest growth rate at the global level (behind only China and India) of major economies, and nearly 70% higher than the non-Latino US GDP rate of 1.7%. If these rates are sustained, Latinos will contribute nearly one quarter of all U.S. GDP growth between 2019 and 2020.
- Latinos are Americans: In 2015, a supermajority of all Latinos were U.S. Citizens, either U.S.-born or naturalized citizens.
“We are excited to have statistical evidence that proves what Latinos living in the U.S. have always known to be true: we are a hard-working, productive, and essential part of American economic growth and American society,” said Ana Valdez, Executive Director of the LDC. “Latinos are America’s new mainstream audience and it is our hope that this study will lead business and political leaders to take us seriously and invest in our continued growth.”
Additional findings include:
- Latinos Are Graduating from College in Record Numbers: The Latino college graduate population, ages 20–24, grew by 40.6% between 2010 and 2015, compared to 13.6% for the non-Latino college graduate population in the same age group.
- Latinos Are on the Front Lines, Defending and Supporting the U.S.: Latinos comprise 25.7% of all 18- to 24-year-old Marines, and 22.2% of 18- to 24-year-olds in the U.S. Army.
- Undocumented Latino Immigrants Are a Small, but Essential, Component of the American Economy: Undocumented Latinos are primarily honest, working-age males with very high labor force participation rates. They are critical to the country’s agricultural production, and their contributions directly translate into lower food prices and lower rates of imports. In most of the country, they represent an inconsequential share of the labor force.
Commissioned by the LDC, Werner Schink, Co-Founder and CEO of Latino Futures Research and Professor David E. Hayes-Bautista, Distinguished Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, conducted the study. Previously, Schink and Hayes-Bautista collaborated on The Hispanic Portfolio: An Investment Guide to the Future (1983), examining the generational effects of Latino population growth in California, and The Burden of Support: Young Latinos in an Aging Society (Stanford University Press, 1988).
To learn more about the study, visit: http://latinodonorcollaborative.org/latino-gdp-report/.
To download the full study, including appendices, methodology, and references, visit: http://latinodonorcollaborative.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Latino_Report_Economic_Growth_June_2017.pdf.
To join the conversation on social media, follow the LDC on Twitter and Facebook and use the hashtag #USLatinoGDPower.
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About the Latino Donor Collaborative
Founded in 2010, the Latino Donor Collaborative works to reframe and advance an accurate perception, portrayal and understanding of the important contributions Latinos make to American society. Through a nonpartisan agenda that partners with media, advertising, politics, corporate America, and civil society, the LDC works to bring further understanding and appreciation to the impact made by Latinos in society, politics, and commerce.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Tolu Onafowokan, tolu@sunshinesachs.com, 212-691-2800
Ulisses Rivera, rivera@sunshinesachs.com, 323-822-9300
