The world's best economies, past, present and future

According to an OECD publication titled The Effectiveness and Scope of Fiscal Stimulus, eleven nations allocated more than 0.75% of GDP to stimulus spending, of which Australia's was the greatest.

Of these eleven, eight rose in the ranking from 2007 to 2013, almost in proportion to the strength of the stimulus. (Luxembourg slipped marginally from 3rd to 6th but remained a strong economy. Spain fell, but may be a special case. Denmark barely budged.)

Other nations outside the OECD which implemented strong stimulus programs also rose dramatically through the GFC, notably China and Oman.

So the evidence does suggest that the overall strategy of strong direct stimulus worked in most countries. But nowhere to greater advantage than in Australia.

The new formula will also be directly applicable in the future: How will Australia rank after a full year of Coalition government? After three years? Beyond?

Abroad, applying the arithmetic will illuminate several questions: Will this be the Asian century, as widely predicted? Will the old European powerhouses regain their former glory?

And how will contrasting economic philosophies play out in years ahead?

Currently the United Kingdom ranks 27th in the world and France 29th, both having suffered badly through the GFC. In 2011 the UK changed to a Conservative government after many years of Labour. Soon after, France did the opposite, changing to a Socialist government after years of conservative UMP rule.

Which will recover faster, if either, and zoom up the table? The score derived from this formula should give an indication.

So we shall see.