06 Apr 2016 1 min read

50bps of grey

By James Carrick

An ONS survey supports our view that real GDP is underestimated by around 50bp as people refuse to declare 'grey' / 'sharing' economy earnings, such as sub-letting accommodation.

finger and graph

Four out of five households admit to paying cash-in-hand to tradesman and a recent survey by the ONS suggests people involved in the ‘sharing’ economy don’t like reporting their earnings either.

"Respondents were unwilling to give information"

The ONS was investigating the size and shape of the sharing economy. When it asked people about earnings generated from the sharing economy:

"Others, who had received money from providing sharing economy services, had mixed reactions to this question. Some respondents were willing to provide responses and explained how they would calculate their estimates, but some respondents refused and warned others who were willing to answer to be careful. Respondents were unwilling to give information if they were, for example, sub-letting accommodation or offering skills and accommodation that was not part of a declared business. Other respondents stated that there was no incentive for them to answer these questions."

This supports our (and Professor Sir Charlie Bean’s) analysis (as detailed in our latest Fundamentals piece Bean Counter) that economic growth is underreported by around 50-75bp and that we should put more emphasis on the strong jobs growth. We think productivity is holding up better than feared, which is good news for equities as productivity is the long-run driver of company earnings.

 

For a more detailed discussion of the impact on equities, see Chris' Fundamentals piece "CPI of the Beholder".

James Carrick

Global economist

James is a global economist with a knack for using analogies to explain economic concepts. He is a techno-optimist and an early adopter. He enjoys building models - both of the economy and robot Lego ones with his son. He also likes crunching data and chocolate bars. He joined in 2006 from the number-one ranked economics team at ABN AMRO with prior experience at HM Treasury.

James Carrick

Related articles

The American dream
Tim Drayson
Economics

The American dream

We believe the unanticipated surge in US immigration is helping to increase the chances of an...
By Tim Drayson
20 Mar 2024
4 min read
What does the Bank of England have in common with Roman priests?
Christopher Jeffery
Economics

What does the Bank of England have in common with Roman priests?

Forecasting future inflation is exceptionally difficult, but the process can still be useful to t...
By Christopher Jeffery
13 Mar 2024
4 min read
Pinning the tail on the donkey
Tim Drayson
Economics

Pinning the tail on the donkey

The output gap is one of the most important concepts for macro investors. Unfortunately, it is ve...
By Tim Drayson
19 Feb 2024
3 min read