California has one-eighth of the U.S. population of 327.7 million. It’s a third the size of Japan, half of Germany and not quite two-thirds of the U.K. But its economic strength looms larger than any of them.
Just about every measure of growth shows that the Golden State is peerless among developed economies for increasing population, expanding gross domestic product, improved joblessness, rising personal income, investment in innovation, and wealth created by its stocks and bonds.