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The Pescadero Perspective
news Project Syndicate 2026-05-29

Paul Krugman's Productivity Metrics for Europe vs. US Criticized

Economist Paul Krugman is criticized for using purchasing power parity to assess Europe's productivity against the US. Critics argue a different metric reveals a widening productivity gap favoring the US.


<p>The Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman uses the wrong metric—purchasing power parity—to make the case that Europe is not lagging far behind the US in terms of productivity. The right metric shows that the gap is growing.</p>

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