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Macroeconomists and policymakers use it as a primary proxy for tracking changes in a nation's average standard of living, as it accounts for the impact of population growth on available economic resources.

If a country's population grows at a faster percentage rate than its economic output, real GDP per capita will fall.

In this scenario, even if a nation avoids a "technical recession" in aggregate terms, the economic pie is being sliced into smaller pieces. The average citizen experiences a decline in their real living standards, a situation often termed a per capita recession.

• Real GDP per capita: The figure is adjusted for inflation (using a GDP deflator or CPI) to measure the actual purchasing power of the average income over time.
• Purchasing Power Parity (PPP): When comparing the metric across different countries, GDP per capita is adjusted to account for the varying costs of living and