Economy США

Economy

The American economy is a free enterprise system that has emerged from the labors of millions of American workers; from the wants that tens of millions of consumers have expressed in the marketplace; from the efforts of thousands of private business people; and from the activities of government officials at all levels who have undertaken the tasks that individual Americans cannot do. 
 

The nation's income and productivity have risen enormously over the past 70 years. In this period, the money for personal consumption tripled in real purchasing power. The gross national product per capita quadrupled, reflecting growth in worker productivity. 

Together, all sectors of the American economy produce almost $4,000 million dollars worth of goods and services annually, and each year they turn out almost $ 190,000 million more. The consumption of these goods and services is spread widely. Most Americans consider themselves members of the middle economic class, and relatively few are extremely wealthy or extremely poor. According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, 9.6 percent of all American families make more than $50,000 a year, and 7.7 percent of all American families have incomes less than $10,000; the median annual income for all American families is about $28,906. 

Americans live in a variety of housing that includes single detached homes (62 percent) with a median cost of $112,500. They also live in apartments, town-houses and mobile homes. Three-fourths of all married couples own their own homes. The size of all dwelling units has increased in living space. The median number of rooms occupied in each dwelling unit has increased from 4.9 rooms per unit in 1960 to 5.2 rooms today, despite the shrinking family size. About 3.6 percent of all Americans live in public (government-supplied or subsidized) housing. 

The government plays an important role in the economy, as is the case in all countries. From the founding of the Republic, the U.S. federal government has strongly supported the development of transportation. It financed the first major canal system and later subsidized the railroads and the airlines. It has developed river valleys and built dams and power stations. It has extended electricity and scientific advice to farmers, and assures them a minimum price for their basic crops. It checks the purity of food and drugs, insures bank deposits and guarantees loans. 

America's individual 50 states have been most active in building roads and in the field of education. Each year the states spend some $33.31 million on schools and provide a free public education for 29.1 million primary-school pupils and 11.4 million youth in secondary schools. (In addition, 8.3 million youths attend private primary and secondary schools.) Approximately 60 percent of the students who graduate from secondary schools attend colleges and universities, 77.2 percent of which are supported by public funds. The U.S. leads the world in the percentage of the population that receives a higher education. Total enrollment in schools of higher learning is 13.4 million. 

Despite the fact that the United States government supports many segments of the nation's economy, economists estimate that the public sector accounts for only one-fifth of American economic activity, with the remainder in private hands. In agriculture, for example, farmers benefit from public education, roads, rural electrification and support prices, but their land is private property to work pretty much as they desire. More than 86.7 percent of America's 208.8 million farms are owned by the people who operate them; the rest are owned by business corporations. With increasingly improved farm machinery, seed and fertilizers, more food is produced each year, although the number of farmers decrease annually. There were 15,669,000 people living on farms in 1960; by 1989 that total had decreased to 4,801,000. Farm output has increased dramatically: just 50 years ago a farmer fed 10 persons; today the average farmer feeds 75. America exports some 440.9 thousand million worth of farm products each year. The United States produces as much as half the world's soybeans and corn for grain, and from 10 to 25 percent of its cotton wheat, tobacco and vegetable oil. 

The bulk of America's wealth is produced by private industries and businesses—ranging from giants like General Motors, which sells $96,371 million worth of cars and trucks each year—to thousands of small, independent entrepreneurs. In 1987, nearly 233,710 small businesses were started in the U.S. Yet by one count, some 75 percent of American products currently face foreign competition within markets in the United States. America has traditionally supported free trade. In 1989, the U.S. exported $360,465 thousand million in goods and imported $475,329 thousand million. 

In 1990, 119.55 million Americans were in the labor force, representing 63.0 percent of the population over the age of 16. The labor force has grown especially rapidly since 1955 as a result of the increased number of working women. Women now constitute more than half of America's total work force. The entry of the "baby boom" generation into the job market has also increased the work force. Part-time employment has increased as well—only about 55 percent of all workers have full-rime, full-year jobs—the rest either work part-time, part-year or both. The average American work week was 41 hours in 1989. 

American industries have become increasingly more service-oriented. Of 12.6 million new jobs created since 1982, almost 85 percent have been in service industries. Careers in technical, business and health-related fields have particularly experienced employee growth in recent years. Approximately 27 million Americans are employed in selling. Another 19.2 million work in manufacturing and 17.5 million work for federal, state and local governments. 

Recently, unemployment in the United States was calculated at about seven percent. The government provides short-term unemployment compensation (from 20 to 39 weeks depending upon economic conditions) to replace wages lost between jobs. About 80 per cent of all wage and salary earners are covered by unemployment insurance. In addition, both the government and private industry provide job training to help unemployed and disadvantaged Americans. 

Political system

The nation's capital, Washington, D.C., has the 10th largest metropolitan population in the country, with a population of over 3.9 million. Laid out by the French architect Pierre L'Enfant in the late 18th century, it was the world's first city especially planned as a center of government. 
 

The city of Washington, in the District of Columbia along the Potomac River, is the capital of a federal union of 50 states. When the United States declared its independence from Great Britain on July 4,1776 (now celebrated as a national holiday), there were 13 original states—each one sovereign, each wanting to control its own affairs. The states tried to keep their sovereignty and independence within a loose confederation, but their attempt proved ineffectual. Therefore, in 1789, they adopted a new Constitution establishing a federal union under a strong central government. 

The original 13 states were grouped along the Atlantic Coast. As the frontier moved westward, large areas of what is now the continental United States were added by purchase, treaty and annexation. As each state was settled, governments were first organized as territories and later entered the Union as states when their territorial legislatures petitioned the Congress for admission. There are now 50 states. Alaska and Hawaii, the last states to enter the Union, did so in 1959. 

Under the Constitution, the states delegated many of their sovereign powers to this central government in Washington. But they kept many important powers for themselves. Each of the 50 states, for example, retains the right to run its own public school system, to decide on the qualifications of its voters, to license its doctors and other professionals, to provide police protection for its citizens and to maintain its roads. 

In actual practice, and in line with the American tradition of keeping government as close to the people as possible, the states delegate many of these powers to their political subdivisions—counties, cities, towns and villages. Thus, at the lowest political level, residents of small American communities elect village trustees to run their police and fire departments, and elect a board of education to run their schools. On the county level, voters elect executives who are responsible for roads, parks, libraries, sewage and other services, and elect or appoint judges for the courts. The citizens of each state also elect a governor and members of the state legislature. 

In addition to the 50 states and the District of Columbia, citizens of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the Virgin Islands and American Samoa vote in federal elections. United States possessions include the Pacific Islands of Wake, Midway, Jarvis, Howland, Baker, Johnston Atoll and Kingman Reef. The United States administers the Republic of Palau under United Nations auspices. Two entities, The Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, have become sovereign self-governing states in free association with the United States. 

Under the Constitution, the federal government is divided into three branches, each chosen in a different manner, each able to check and balance the others. 

The Executive Branch is headed by the President, who, together with the Vice President, is chosen in nationwide elections every four years (in every year divisible by four). The elective process for a U.S. President is unique. Americans vote for slates of presidential electors equal to the number of Senators and Representatives each state has in Congress (a total of 535 persons). The candidate with the highest number of votes in each state wins all the electoral votes of that state. The presidential candidate needs 270 electoral votes to be elected; if no candidate has a majority, the House of Representatives makes the decision. (In all other state and local elections, voters cast their votes directly for the candidate or referendum on that particular ballot.) Any natural-born American who is 35 years old or older may be elected to this office. The President proposes bills to Congress, enforces federal laws, serves as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and, with the approval of the Senate makes treaties and appoints federal judges, ambassadors and other members of the Executive Departments (the Departments of State, Defense Commerce, Justice, etc.). Each Cabinet head holds the title of Secretary and together they form a council called the Cabinet. 

The Vice President, elected from the same political party as the President, acts as chairman of the Senate, and in the event of the death or disability of the President, assumes the Presidency for the balance of his term. 

The Legislative Branch is made up of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The 435 seats in the House of Representatives are allocated on the basis of population, although every state has at least one representative. Each state elects two members of the 100-member Senate; a Senator's term of office is six years. 

Both houses must approve a bill for it to become law, but the President may veto or refuse to sign it. If so, Congress reconsiders the bill. If two-thirds of the members of both houses then approve it, the bill becomes law even without the President's signature. 

The Judicial Branch is made up of Federal District Courts (at least one in every state), 11 Federal Courts of Appeals and, at the top, the Supreme Court. Federal judges are appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate; to minimize political influences, their appointments are for life. Federal courts decide cases involving federal law, conflicts between states or between citizens of different states. An American who feels he has been convicted under an unjust law may appeal his case all the way to the Supreme Court, which may rule that the law is unconstitutional. The law then becomes void. 

In order to amend the Constitution, Congress must pass the proposed amendment by a two-thirds majority vote in each house, and three-fourths of the states must concur. In more than 195 years, the Constitution has been amended 26 times. The first 10 Amendments— the Bill of Rights—guarantee individual liberties: freedom of speech, religion and assembly, the right to a fair trial, the security of one's home. Later amendments chronicle America's struggle for equality and justice for all of its people. These amendments abolish slavery, prohibit any denial of rights because of race, grant the vote to women and to citizens of the District of Columbia and allow citizens to vote at age 18. 

Американская  экономика - система свободного предпринимательства, которая появилась из рабочих сил миллионов американских рабочих; от хотения этого десятки миллионов потребителей выразили на рынке; от усилий тысяч людей частного предпринимательства; и от действий правительственных чиновников на всех уровнях, которые предприняли задачи, которые не могут сделать отдельные американцы. 
 

Национальный  доход и производительность повысились чрезвычайно за прошлые 70 лет. В этот период деньги для личного потребления  утроились в реальной покупательной  способности. Валовой национальный продукт на душу учетверяемый, размышляющий рост производительности рабочего. 

Вместе, все сектора  американской экономики производят долларовую ценность за почти $4 000 миллионов  товаров и услуг ежегодно, и  каждый год они оказываются почти $190 000 миллионами больше. Потребление этих товаров и услуг распространено широко. Большинство американцев считает себя членами среднего экономического класса, и относительно немногие чрезвычайно богаты или чрезвычайно бедны. Согласно американским числам Бюро переписи, 9.6 процентов всех американских семей делают больше чем 50 000$ в год, и у 7.7 процентов всех американских семей есть доходы меньше чем 10 000$; средний годовой доход для всех американских семей составляет приблизительно 28 906$. 

Американцы живут  во множестве жилья, которое включает единственные отдельные дома (62 процента) со средней стоимостью 112 500$. Они  также живут в квартирах, особняках  и домах на колесах. Трем четвертям  всех супружеских пар принадлежат  их собственные дома. Размер всех живущих единиц увеличился в жилой площади. Среднее число комнат, занятых в каждой живущей единице, увеличилось с 4.9 комнат за единицу в 1960 в 5.2 комнат сегодня, несмотря на размер семьи сокращения. Приблизительно 3.6 процента всех американцев живут публично (снабженный правительством или субсидированный) жилье. 

Правительство играет важную роль в экономике, как  имеет место во всех странах. От основания  республики американское федеральное  правительство сильно поддержало развитие транспортировки. Это финансировало первую главную систему канала и позже субсидировало железные дороги и авиалинии. Это развило долины реки и построило дамбы и электростанции. Это расширило электричество и научный совет фермерам, и уверяет их минимальная цена за их основные сельскохозяйственные культуры. Это проверяет чистоту еды и наркотиков, страхует вклады в банк и гарантирует ссуды. 

Отдельные 50 государств Америки были самыми активными в  строительстве дорог и в области  образования. Каждый год государства  тратят приблизительно $33,31 миллиона на школы и предоставляют свободное государственное образование 29.1 миллионам учеников начальной школы и 11.4 миллионам молодежи в средних школах. (Кроме того, 8.3 миллионов молодых людей посещают частные начальные и средние школы.) Приблизительно 60 процентов студентов, которые заканчивают средние школы, учатся в колледжах и университетах, 77.2 процентов которых поддержаны государственными средствами. США приводят мир в проценте населения, которое получает высшее образование. Полная регистрация в школах высшего образования 13.4 миллионов. 

Несмотря на то, что правительство Соединенных  Штатов поддерживает много сегментов  национальной экономики, экономисты оценивают, что общественный сектор составляет только одну пятую американской деловой активности с остатком в частных руках. В сельском хозяйстве, например, фермеры извлекают выгоду из государственного образования, дорог, сельской электрификации и поддерживают цены, но их земля - частная собственность, чтобы работать в значительной степени, как они желают. Больше чем 86.7 процентов 208.8 миллионов ферм Америки принадлежат людям, которые управляют ими; остальные принадлежат торгово-промышленным корпорациям. Со все более и более улучшаемой машиной фермы, семенем и удобрениями, больше еды производится каждый год, хотя число фермеров уменьшается ежегодно. Было 15 669 000 человек, живущих на фермы в 1960; к 1989 то общее количество уменьшилось к 4 801 000. Продукция фермы увеличилась резко: только 50 лет назад фермер накормил 10 человек; сегодня средний фермер питается 75. Америка экспортирует приблизительно 440.9 тысячи миллионов ценности сельскохозяйственных продуктов каждый год. Соединенные Штаты производят столько, сколько половина сои в мире и зерна для зерна, и от 10 до 25 процентов его хлопчатобумажной пшеницы, табака и растительного масла. 

Большая часть  богатства Америки произведена  частными отраслями промышленности и фирмами — в пределах от гигантов как General Motors, который продает ценность за $96 371 миллион автомобилей и грузовиков каждый год — тысячам мелких, независимых предпринимателей. В 1987 почти 233 710 предприятий малого бизнеса были начаты в США. Все же одним количеством, приблизительно 75 процентов американских продуктов в настоящее время стоят перед иностранной конкуренцией на рынках в Соединенных Штатах. Америка традиционно поддержала свободную торговлю. В 1989 США экспортировали миллион за $360 465 тысяч в товарах и импортировали миллион за $475 329 тысяч. 

В 1990 119.55 миллионов  американцев были в рабочей силе, представляя 63.0 процента населения по возрасту 16. Рабочая сила выросла особенно быстро с 1955 в результате увеличенного числа рабочих женщин. Женщины теперь составляют больше чем половину полной рабочей силы Америки. Вход поколения "демографического взрыва" на рынок вакансий также увеличил рабочую силу. Неполная занятость увеличилась также — только приблизительно 55 процентов всех рабочих имеют полный иней, годовые рабочие места — остальные или работают частично занятые, частично летние или оба. Средняя американская рабочая неделя составляла 41 час в 1989. 

Американские  отрасли промышленности все более  и более становились более  для обслуживания широкого круга  запросов. Из 12.6 миллионов новых  рабочих мест, созданных с 1982, почти 85 процентов были в сферах услуг. Карьеры в технических, деловых и связанных со здоровьем областях особенно испытали рост служащего в последние годы. Приблизительно 27 миллионов американцев наняты в продаже. Еще 19.2 миллионов работ в производстве и 17.5 миллионов работ для федеральных, государственных и местных органов власти.