Fat attack

When economists talk about countries living beyond their means, they usually have in mind such measurements as debt ratios and personal consumption expenditures. Let's throw out the eco-babble, though. To judge how financially overextended a country is, all you usually need to do is look at its waistlines. You might call it the Big Ass index. The bigger the posteriors, the bigger the risk of an economic meltdown. In a class of its own is the U.S., with an obesity rating of 30.6%. From there, this unscientific measurement suggests that Mexico, the U.K., Slovakia, Greece, Australia, New Zealand and Hungary should be facing hardships now or in the near future. The CR is no island of austerity but has only an average risk of a fat-induced economic crisis. China is one of those with the lowest obesity rating, but it's getting fatter fast. Maybe, just maybe, the Chinese will eat the rest of us out of this crisis. [Czech Republic United Kingdom United States of America]