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How (un) reasonable is to take the ratio of GDPs in local currency over GDPs in USD to convert http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=SNA&f=group_code%3A203 to current USD?

I have looked for a version un USD that doesn't combine more than 60 currencies, but I can't find one. I need the "Output, at basic prices"

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How (un) reasonable is to take the ratio of GDPs in local currency over GDPs in USD to convert ... to current USD?

That will not convert them to current USD prices. So it is about as reasonable as dividing any random two numbers.

The way how to convert them is to use either use exchange rate or PPP. PPP is better for international comparison than exchange rate since it controls for geographic differences in price level so I would suggest using that unless you just want to convert the values without such adjustment. Since you want current prices you want to pick exchange rate or PPP at the same time period and you want to avoid making adjustments for inflation.

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  • $\begingroup$ I'm not an expert, but was it too strange to assume GDP (currency x) / GDP (USD) = some constant (currency x / USD)? Why would that be equivalent to dividing two random variables? $\endgroup$
    – Pacha
    Jan 23 at 3:57
  • $\begingroup$ @Pacha the problem is that GDP_USD = USD*realGDP so when you divide GDP_x/GDP_USD you get a constant that is composed from x/USD*GDP_x/GDP_US and its impossible to unscramble the eggs to figure out x/USD from that. For example suppose that GDP_x/GDP_USD=10. This does not tell you what x GDP is at local currency. It tells you that measured in x/USD units the GDP of x is 10 times the size of GDP of US. Its impossible to calculate what exactly the x/USD units are without dividing price level in x and price level in US and that is how you get PPP so then you can use it directly as I sugested $\endgroup$
    – 1muflon1 ♦
    Jan 23 at 12:46
  • $\begingroup$ I didn't really understand, that constant seems to be what I was looking for, but I shall use a PPP dataset. $\endgroup$
    – Pacha
    Jan 23 at 19:38
  • $\begingroup$ @Pacha you can use whatever you want if you think that the constant is what you are looking for then go for that $\endgroup$
    – 1muflon1 ♦
    Jan 23 at 23:11
  • $\begingroup$ Thx! I found that the constant works for stable countries, any kind of hyperinflation doesn't work. Also, how do I mark the answer as correct? I got exchange rates from the WB, and that seems to work $\endgroup$
    – Pacha
    Jan 25 at 0:16

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