GDP As a Measure of the Economy The GDP is not a sufficient gauge of how the nation's economy is doing. The GDP is a sum of the monetary value of what has been produced in the nation in the past year. The formula for calculating the GDP ignores a large percentage of the activities that transpire in the nation's economy. The formula ignores several things as work done in the home and activities in the underground economy. In general, the GDP includes several items that in reality do not indicate the nation's economic level while excluding a large proportion of the activities of the nation.