The $35 Trillion Building Blowout

Governments know how to do two things really well... tax and spend. (Well, three if you include taking money from lobbyists.) But you can get back some of the money they take out of your pocket.

Government spending has always been a big business – with big stakes for the private sector. Now it’s a huge global business, and the stakes are bigger than ever. Governments are whooping it up, spending money like they actually have it. (Okay, China does. But the Western countries, including the U.S., don’t.)

In the next two years, some $3 trillion of government money will be injected into the global economy, according to research firm CIBC World Markets. In the next 20 years, some $35 trillion will be spent on infrastructure globally.

These are the countries having the most fun...

• The Obama administration will spend $150 billion of its $787 billion stimulus plan on infrastructure.

• China has pledged $585 billion, and stands ready to do more.

• India is expected to spend $500 billion on infrastructure from now until 2015.

• The European Union, $252 billion.

• Japan, $129 billion.

• Canada, $12 billion.

• Australia, $4.7 billion.

• Singapore, $13.8 billion.

• Germany, $42 billion.

And so on. Read the full story