EU versus USA
by Fredrik Bergstrom, Robert Gidehag 2004
If the European Union were a state in the USA it would belong to the poorest group of states. France, Italy, Great Britain and Germany have lower GDP per capita than all but four of the states in the United States. In fact, GDP per capita is lower in the vast majority of the EU-countries (EU 15) than in most of the individual American states. This puts Europeans at a level of prosperity on par with states such as Arkansas, Mississippi and West Virginia. Only the miniscule country of Luxembourg has higher per capita GDP than the average state in the USA.
Timbro

Poor People's Knowledge
by Michael Finger & Philip Schuler 2004
Revelations about TRIPs: poor people in poor countries have something to sell.
American Enterprise Institute