A highly topical look at the formula that dominates economics, and why it has outlived its usefulness.

'[A] tale of cloak and dagger intrigue, intense rivalries and political machinations you'd expect in a spy thriller.' Engineering & Technology

Gross Domestic Product is failing. For decades it has rewarded environmental destruction and obscured inequality. Its formula can be-and has been-gamed to the detriment of developing countries.

In this powerfully argued book, now updated with a new chapter, science writer Ehsan Masood shows how GDP fell from the path envisaged by its architects, and how its long-term misapplication has kept large parts of the world in poverty, while helping accelerate global warming and biodiversity loss.

As the world rebuilds after the coronavirus pandemic and the accompanying global recession, our need for a more sustainable and inclusive measure of economic growth has never been greater. Change must come if we are to break the cycle. With clarity and passion, Masood shows how we can update GDP for a better future.

[previously published as The Great Invention in North America]

'[A] persuasive witness for the prosecution in the case against GDP mania.'