Gross State Product (GSP) is the dollar value of all goods and services produced in a state. Similar to national Gross Domestic Product (GDP), GSP growth is an indicator of the health of a state’s economy. GSP data are released roughly two years after the last reporting period.

The pie chart on the right shows the contribution of each state’s economic output to the region’s total GSP in 2007. Connecticut and Massachusetts together contribute more than three-quarters of New England’s aggregate GSP, with nearly one half from Massachusetts alone. These figures are roughly consistent with state shares of the total New England population.

In the chart on the left, year-over-year growth rates of the sum of the six New England states’ GSPs are compared to the average of all 50 states’ to gauge the region’s relative economic performance. New England outperformed the U.S. throughout most of the 1980s, but suffered more following the early 1990’s recession. In the middle and late 1990’s, New England’s GSP recovered and kept pace with the nation. After the 2001 recession, however, New England GSP consistently underperformed the nation as a whole.