a few facts can't hurt me thinks
:
GDP U.S.A.
13,16 trillion total or 43800 U$/ capita
E.U.
16,6 trillion total or 28213 U$/capita
source : wikipedia,bbc,cnn/ check for yourself !
The higher per capita value of the U.S. is overruled by the smaller population ( 301 000 000 compared to close to 500 000 000 in the E.U.).
The total GDP is, of course, the result of the per capita value multiplied with the total population number.
While it is true that the E.U. has a few poorer East European members ( hence the difference in per capita income), the influence is negligible due to the comparatively small numbers ( population of e.g. bulgaria only 7 322 858 U$ or 10 843U$/capita).
The lower per capita income is interesting for another reason : growth potential is relatively higher when starting from a lower base ( see china ).
Every serious prediction I know sees higher future growth rates within the emerging countries ( China, South America
AND Eastern Europe) compared to the established western economies ( U.S., Western Europe). This means that the gap between the E.U. will eventually become even bigger than it is now.