Howard Lutnick, the U.S. Commerce Secretary, has expressed his intent to exclude government spending from the gross domestic product (GDP) calculations. What Happened: Lutnick argued that government spending has historically distorted GDP figures.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Sunday he would strip out government spending from the gross domestic product (GDP) report, but gave no indication how soon this change might happen, while dismissing fears of a possible recession.

If you ask an economics professor about what GDP is, they will tell you that it is the total value of all goods and services produced by a country at a given time. That’s a simple enough definition, but how do you calculate that massive number?