Markets
The 20 Largest Stock Exchanges in the World
Investors know the NYSE as a home for the world’s most important blue chip stocks. Massive companies like Walmart, Berkshire Hathaway, Exxon Mobil, and Coca-Cola are listed on the exchange along with roughly 2,400 other companies, and together they add up to an astounding $20 trillion in value.
But how do other exchanges around the world, such as the ones in Toronto or London, compare to the famed NYSE?
Comparing the Largest Stock Exchanges
Today’s infographic comes to us from StocksToTrade.com, and it compares the 20 largest stock exchanges in the world in terms of market capitalization, total companies listed, and number of years since they were founded.
The Oldest Exchange: Of the top 20 stock exchanges on the above list, the oldest can be found in Frankfurt. Originally the location of medieval trade fairs in the 11th century, Frankfurt quickly became an important center for commercial and monetary transactions. The “birth” of the stock exchange is said to have happened in 1585 when fair merchants decided to establish fixed currency exchange rates.
The Most Listed Companies: Established in 1875, the Bombay Stock Exchange was actually Asia’s first stock exchange. It has 5,749 listed public companies, which is the most of any of the top 20 exchanges. The majority of companies listed on the BSE are smallcaps, with an average market capitalization of just US$292 million per company.
The Largest Market Cap: As mentioned before, the NYSE takes the cake here with close to $20 trillion in market capitalization. There is a steep drop-off after the NYSE, which is followed by NASDAQ ($7 trillion), London Stock Exchange ($6 trillion), Tokyo Stock Exchange ($4 trillion), Shanghai Stock Exhcange ($4 trillion), and Hong Kong Stock exchange ($3 trillion).
In fact, only 16 exchanges have market capitalizations over $1 trillion. Here are those visualized by market cap on a map from our previous infographic that showed all of the stock exchanges in the world.
Impressively, these 16 exchanges account for about 87% of total stock exchange market capitalization.
Markets
Visualizing California’s GDP Compared to Countries
California’s GDP makes the state one of the most powerful economies in the world. This graphic compares it to the GDP of 10 select countries.
Creator Program
California’s GDP Compared to Countries
Comedian Trevor Noah once said America is fifty little countries masquerading as one.
From an economic sense, this might carry some truth. When looking at the economic output of each state, especially the largest and wealthiest ones, they often compare to or even exceed the GDPs of entire nations.
To illustrate, this visual from StatsPanda looks at California’s $3.36 trillion GDP using data from The World Bank and compares it to 10 sizable country economies. Let’s take a closer look.
Sizing Up California’s GDP in 2021
California’s $3+ trillion GDP is an enormous figure in its own right, so it’s no surprise that it is larger than certain nations’ economic output.
But even when comparing with economies like Malaysia, Colombia, and Finland, all among the top 50 countries by GDP, California stands tall.
| Country | GDP (2021 USD) |
|---|---|
| 🇲🇾 Malaysia | $372B |
| 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | $369B |
| 🇻🇳 Vietnam | $366B |
| 🇮🇷 Iran | $359B |
| 🇵🇰 Pakistan | $348B |
| 🇨🇱 Chile | $317B |
| 🇨🇴 Colombia | $314B |
| 🇫🇮 Finland | $297B |
| 🇷🇴 Romania | $284B |
| 🇨🇿 Czechia | $281B |
| Total | $3,307B |
| California | $3,357B |
What’s more, these 10 countries are quite densely populated, with a combined population of 653 million compared to California’s 39 million total.
A Closer Look At California’s Economy
What makes California’s GDP so vast and their economy so powerful?
Relative population is a big factor, as the state is the most populous in the U.S. with roughly 12% of the country’s population calling it home. But since California’s GDP makes up over 15% of the country’s economic output, there must be something else at work.
One key driver is the technology sector. Not only does Silicon Valley generate massive amounts of technological output, this also translates directly to wealth and economic activity. Many tech markets follow winner-take-all dynamics, bringing large revenues back to the state. In addition, smaller technology companies are frequently gobbled up by larger competitors, adding wealth back into the mix through M&A.
This might partly explain why California’s GDP is actually estimated to overtake Germany’s in the coming years and become the world’s 4th largest economy.
-
Markets4 weeks agoMapped: Unemployment Forecasts, by Country in 2023
-
Energy2 weeks agoMapped: Asia’s Biggest Sources of Electricity by Country
-
Personal Finance5 days agoMapped: Minimum Wage Around the World
-
Markets4 weeks agoConsumer Price Inflation, by Type of Good or Service (2000-2022)
-
Markets2 weeks agoRanked: The World’s Most Valuable Bank Brands (2019-2023)
-
Mining5 days agoCharted: 30 Years of Central Bank Gold Demand
-
Markets4 weeks agoRetail Investors’ Most Popular Stocks of 2023 So Far
-
VC+2 weeks agoNEW FEATURE: Unlock the VC+ Archive in March