U.S. Latinos rocket from 8th to 5th largest GDP in the world with $2.8 trillion of economic output

If Hispanic Americans were congregated as an independent nation-state, their GDP would rank fifth in the world, a stunning amount that is more than the gross domestic product of France, India and even the United Kingdom, according to a report Thursday.

The report, published by the Latino Donor Collaborative in conjunction with Wells Fargo reports that the Hispanic American economic output during the pandemic in 2020 was $2.8 trillion, a boost of $2.1 trillion from 2015 and $1.7 trillion in 2010. The LDC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan group aiming to reshape perceptions of Hispanic Americans through data and research.

It has featured speakers on the both the left and right ranging from everyone such as Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep. Julian Castro to Rupert Murdoch, the CEO of News Corporation and business leaders such as Steve Forbes.

This latest report on the economic growth of our U.S. Latino cohort is confirmation of the dominance of U.S. Latinos in growth of the New Mainstream Economy… This report proves that our country’s biggest growth opportunity lies in our U.S. Latino cohort,” LDC co-founder and chairman Sol Trujillo said.

“The U.S. Latino cohort has accounted for nearly 80% of the net new additions to our labor force during the past decade, while also accounting for 52% of all net new employer businesses, making it out country’s most prolific entrepreneurial cohort.”

The LDC study found that Hispanic Americans “represent a consumption market larger in size than the entire economy of nations like Canada or South Korea,” which suggests Latino gains in personal income as a result of increased labor participation and higher educational achievement. In 2020, Latino consumption was reportedly $1.84 trillion. 

“We’re talking about not just population growth and workforce growth, but also economic growth in terms of wealth creation, businesses formed, homes purchased, products purchased, movie tickets and sports tickets bought, streaming subscriptions, you name it,” Trujillo said.

Hispanic Americans, who make up 19% of the U.S. population are rapidly adding to the national population. Reports indicate Latinos made up half the nation’s population growth in the last decade and more than 65% from 2019 to 2020 while boasting a quarter of America’s youth.

“The youthfulness of this cohort means many of those workers now have the experience and skills that are moving them up the income ladder,” Trujillo explained.

“At the same time, the growth in U.S. Latino educational attainment has been leading all other cohorts, which means the newest Latino entries into the labor force are entering at higher paying jobs and professions than ever before. In other words, the increase in the growth and strength of Latino human capital has resulted in a powerful economic engine for our country.

In 2020, an estimated 75% of the Hispanic American population were in 10 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina and Texas. In three Democratic states, Illinois, New Jersey and New York, Hispanic Americans prevented a labor force decline from 2010 to 2018.

The report also suggests that Latinos strived throughout the COVID-19 pandemic despite Pew Research studies showing that it hit the Hispanic American community hard. The report says that Latino economic output skyrocketed from the world's eighth-largest GDP when 2020 started to the fifth largest when it ended.

In terms of wage increase, the LDC determined that salary incomes increased 6.7% during the last decade, a significant elevation of non-Latinos whose wages diminished by 1.1% during the last 10 years.

Some experts attributed this to the fact that apparently fewer Latinos contracted COVID-19 than non-Latinos, enabling them to keep working in the labor force.

In terms of college educational achievements, the number of Latinos earning bachelor degrees and advanced degrees increased by 2.8 times faster than non-Latinos.

Hispanic American mortgages also escalated with 29.2% more Latino households during the last decade compared to only 5.8% of non-Latinos with the total number of Hispanic Americans getting a four year degree or higher increasing by 13% in 2020 alone.

As part of its research methodology, the report used data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Census Bureau.