Measuring national prosperity: Exports, imports, trade balance, investments, and bank balances are not definitive prosperity indicators; despite larger pre–World War II exports, England's national prosperity is greater today because the average incomes of ordinary workers have risen; which conclusion is best supported?

Given data

• Traditional macro indicators (exports, trade balance, etc.) are not decisive measures of prosperity.
• England has higher prosperity now with lower exports than earlier because average worker incomes have risen.

Concept/Approach (people-centric metric)
Prosperity is reflected in the material well-being of the average citizen; hence income per person, i.e., per capita income, is a better index than trade aggregates.

Step-by-Step reasoning
1) Counterexample: higher past exports yet lower prosperity then vs. now.2) Explanation: current higher incomes of average workers.3) Inference: per capita income aligns with lived prosperity better than trade metrics.

Verification/Alternative check
Options tying prosperity to trade balance or export growth contradict the passage's example; claims about continuous trade increases are not stated.

Final Answer
A country's economic standard is best adjudged by per capita income.