Markets
Mapped: The World’s Largest Economies, Sized by GDP (1970-2020)
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Visualizing The World’s Largest Economies (1970-2020)
Global GDP has grown massively over the last 50 years, but not all countries experienced this economic growth equally.
In 1970, the world’s nominal GDP was just $3.4 trillion. Fast forward a few decades and it had reached $85.3 trillion by 2020. And thanks to shifting dynamics, such as industrialization and the rise and fall of political regimes, the world’s largest economies driving this global growth have changed over time.
This slideshow using graphics from Ruben Berge Mathisen show the distribution of global GDP among countries in 1970, 1995, and 2020.
Methodology
Using data from the United Nations, Mathisen collected nominal GDP in U.S. dollars for each country. He then determined each country’s GDP as a share of global GDP and sized each graphic’s bubbles accordingly.
The bubbles were placed according to country latitude and longitude coordinates, but Mathisen programmed the bubbles so that they wouldn’t overlap with each other. For this reason, some countries are slightly displaced from their exact locations on a map.
1970: USSR as a Major Player
In 1970, the U.S. accounted for the largest share of global GDP, making up nearly one-third of the world economy. The table below shows the top 10 economies in 1970.
Rank | Country | GDP (1970) | Share of Global GDP |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | 🇺🇸 United States | $1.1T | 31.4 % |
#2 | ☭ USSR | $433B | 12.7 % |
#3 | 🇩🇪 Germany | $216B | 6.3 % |
#4 | 🇯🇵 Japan | $213B | 6.2 % |
#5 | 🇫🇷 France | $148B | 4.3 % |
#6 | 🇬🇧 UK | $131B | 3.8 % |
#7 | 🇮🇹 Italy | $113B | 3.3 % |
#8 | 🇨🇳 China | $93B | 2.7 % |
#9 | 🇨🇦 Canada | $89B | 2.6 % |
#10 | 🇮🇳 India | $62B | 1.8 % |
Then a global superpower, the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) came in second place on the list of the world’s largest economies.
In the years leading up to 1970, the USSR had seen impressive GDP growth largely due to adopting Western technologies that increased productivity. However, the USSR’s economy began to stagnate in the ‘70s, and eventually collapsed in 1991.
On the other side, Germany (including both West and East Germany) was the third-largest economy in 1970 after rising from economic ruin following World War II. West Germany’s “Economic Miracle” is largely credited to the introduction of a new currency to replace the Riechsmark, large tax cuts brought in to spur investment, and the removal of price controls.
1995: Japan Begins to Slow Down
By 1995, the U.S. still held the top spot on the world’s largest economies list, but the country’s share of global GDP had shrunk.
Rank | Country/Area | GDP (1995) | Share of Global GDP |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | 🇺🇸 United States | $7.6T | 24.4 % |
#2 | 🇯🇵 Japan | $5.5T | 17.7 % |
#3 | 🇩🇪 Germany | $2.6T | 8.3 % |
#4 | 🇫🇷 France | $1.6T | 5.1 % |
#5 | 🇬🇧 UK | $1.3T | 4.3 % |
#6 | 🇮🇹 Italy | $1.2T | 3.8 % |
#7 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | $778B | 2.5 % |
#8 | 🇨🇳 China | $734B | 2.4 % |
#9 | 🇪🇸 Spain | $615B | 2.0 % |
#10 | 🇨🇦 Canada | $606B | 1.9 % |
Meanwhile, Japan had leapfrogged into second place and nearly tripled its share of the global economy compared to 1970. A number of factors played into Japan’s economic success:
- Large business groups known as keiretsu used their connections to undercut rivals
- Fierce competition between companies encouraged innovation
- Tax breaks and cheap credit stimulated investment
- The well-educated workforce was willing to work extremely long hours
But around 1990, the country’s economy had actually begun to slow down. Japan’s decreasing labor force participation rate and diminishing returns from higher education both could have played a role.
2020: The World’s Largest Economies Shift Again
In 2020, the United States continued to hold onto the number one spot among the world’s largest economies. However, Japan’s slowdown created a rare opportunity for a new powerhouse to emerge: China.
Rank | Country/Area | GDP (2020) | Share of Global GDP |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | 🇺🇸 United States | $20.9T | 24.5 % |
#2 | 🇨🇳 China | $14.7T | 17.3 % |
#3 | 🇯🇵 Japan | $5.1T | 5.9 % |
#4 | 🇩🇪 Germany | $3.8T | 4.5 % |
#5 | 🇬🇧 UK | $2.8T | 3.2 % |
#6 | 🇮🇳 India | $2.7T | 3.1 % |
#7 | 🇫🇷 France | $2.6T | 3.1 % |
#8 | 🇮🇹 Italy | $1.9T | 2.2 % |
#9 | 🇨🇦 Canada | $1.6T | 1.9 % |
#10 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | $1.6T | 1.9 % |
China’s economy saw incredible growth following economic reforms in 1978. The reforms encouraged the formation of private businesses, liberalized foreign trade and investment, relaxed state control over some prices, and invested in industrial production and the education of its workforce. With profit incentives introduced to private businesses, productivity increased.
China was also positioned as a cheap manufacturing hub for multinational corporations. Since rising into contention, the country has become the world’s largest exporter.
India held the title of the sixth largest economy in 2020. Similar to China, the country’s growth came from relaxed economic restrictions, and it has seen particularly strong growth within the service sector, including telecommunications, IT, and software.
With dynamics shifting, which countries will be on the leaderboard in another 25 years?

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.
Markets
Ranked: Top Countries by Stock Market Returns Since 2015
Wondering how stock market returns vary by country? Here’s the annualized return of the largest stock exchanges in 30 countries since 2015.

Ranked: Top Countries by Stock Market Returns Since 2015
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Key Takeaways
- The S&P 500 delivered a 17% annualized return in 10 years, the most for major stock exchanges from around the world.
- However major indices from Brazil, India, and Vietnam have also logged between 12–16% returns.
Thinking of becoming a true global investor with investments around the world?
Wondering what financial markets to enter next?
This chart, which visualizes annualized returns (in U.S. dollars) between March 15th, 2015–2025 from major stock exchanges in 30 countries, has some insights.
Data is sourced from HelloSafe, a Canadian insurance comparison platform.
The Best Stock Exchanges For Returns Since 2015
The S&P 500 delivered a 17% annualized return in 10 years, the most for major stock exchanges from around the world.
That’s nearly 5x in returns, which means $10,000 invested in 2015 would be almost $50,000 in 2025.
Rank | Countries | Main Index | Annualized Return (2015-2025) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | S&P 500 | 16.9% |
2 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | Bovespa | 15.9% |
3 | 🇮🇳 India | BSE Sensex | 15.9% |
4 | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | VN-Index | 12.2% |
5 | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | S&P/NZX 50 | 10.7% |
6 | 🇷🇺 Russia | MOEX Russia Index | 9.2% |
7 | 🇯🇵 Japan | Nikkei 225 | 9.1% |
8 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | Swiss Performance Index (SPI) | 9.0% |
9 | 🇩🇪 Germany | DAX | 9.0% |
10 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | AEX Index | 8.8% |
11 | 🇵🇱 Poland | WIG | 8.3% |
12 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | ISEQ Overall Index | 7.3% |
13 | 🇨🇦 Canada | S&P/TSX Composite | 7.2% |
14 | 🇮🇹 Italy | FTSE MIB | 7.1% |
15 | 🇿🇦 South Africa | FTSE/JSE All Share Index | 6.9% |
16 | 🇦🇹 Austria | ATX | 6.6% |
17 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | TAIEX | 6.4% |
18 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | OMX Stockholm 30 | 6.0% |
19 | 🇫🇷 France | CAC 40 | 5.9% |
20 | 🇲🇦 Morocco | MASI | 5.6% |
21 | 🇫🇮 Finland | OMX Helsinki 25 | 3.4% |
22 | 🇦🇺 Australia | S&P/ASX 200 | 3.3% |
23 | 🇬🇧 UK | FTSE 100 | 2.7% |
24 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | BEL 20 | 2.0% |
25 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | CPI | 1.8% |
26 | 🇵🇹 Portugal | PSI 20 | 1.7% |
27 | 🇪🇸 Spain | IBEX 35 | 1.7% |
28 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | Straits Times Index | 1.3% |
29 | 🇨🇳 China | SSE Composite Index | 0.0% |
30 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | Hang Seng Index | -0.2% |
31 | 🇵🇭 Philippines | PSEi | -2.0% |
However, major indices from Brazil, India, and Vietnam have also logged between 12–16%.
They’ve handily beaten exchanges in Europe (the DAX and the FTSE) as well as from other parts of Asia (Nikkei).
But also—why has the SSE Composite Index, which tracks the Shanghai stock exchange, not moved at all?
The 2015 Chinese Bubble Explained
Turns out mass inexperienced investing can have major consequences.
In 2015, China’s stock market experienced a surge in retail investor activity, fueled by speculative reading and easy credit.
As a result, the Shanghai Composite Index, which had been climbing rapidly, peaked in June before crashing 30% over the next three weeks.
As of April, 2025, the Shanghai Composite Index has not yet recovered its 2015 high.
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