what are growth rates 
growth rates refer to the percentage change of a specific variable within a specific time period growth rates can be positive or negative depending on whether the size of the variable is increasing or decreasing over time growth rates were first used by biologists studying population sizes but they have since been brought into use in studying economic activity corporate management or investment returns for investors growth rates typically represent the compounded annualized rate of growth of an investment or a company s revenues earnings or dividends growth rates are also applied to more macro concepts such as gross domestic product gdp and unemployment expected forward looking or trailing growth rates are two common kinds of growth rates used for analysis investopedia xiaojie liu understanding growth ratesat their most basic level growth rates are used to express the annual change in a variable as a percentage for example an economy s growth rate is derived as the annual rate of change at which a country s gdp increases or decreases this rate of growth is used to measure an economy s recession or expansion if the income within a country declines for two consecutive quarters it is considered to be in a recession conversely if the country has grown its income for two consecutive quarters it is considered to be expanding 