Markets
This Map Shows the Most Extreme Comparison of Population Density We’ve Seen
You may have heard that the majority of the world’s population actually lives within a relatively small circle that covers China, India, Japan, and other parts of Southeast Asia.
That’s a pretty extreme example of population density – but here’s one that is even more impressive.
It’s quite simple actually: it compares parts of the most expansive regions (Canada, Russia, non-coastal USA, Greenland, Australia, and others) with a tiny chunk of land that holds close to 400 million people.
An Extreme Comparison of Population Density
The following image comes to us from Metrocosm, the website of data visualization expert Max Galka.
Bangladesh and three provinces in India, which are highlighted in red, take up just 160,000 sq. mi (415,000 sq. km) – that’s smaller than California. Together they hold more population than all of the blue territories on the map.
That’s right, the blue area contains the entirety of many significant countries, such as Canada, Australia, Norway, Sweden, and Saudi Arabia. The blue even includes parts of China, the United States, and most of Russia.
Getting More Extreme
Here’s the kicker – the disparity is only getting more intense. Take a look at the following map of the fastest growing cities, showing the rate of new citizens per hour:
Dhaka, the largest city in Bangladesh, is one of the fastest growing cities in the world with a growth rate of 74 people per hour. Kolkata (India) is also up there, adding 32 citizens every hour.
Meanwhile, the cities within the blue area of the original map do not have the same kind of growth happening at all.
For the Numbers Geeks
Here are the original calculations, from Metrocosm, for the blue and red areas of the original map in case you are interested. It’s worth noting that the data was retrieved in 2015, so it is slightly out of date.
The “Blue” Regions
Jurisdiction | Region | Population |
---|---|---|
Canada | All | 35,010,000 |
Saudi Arabia | All | 28,123,000 |
Australia | All | 22,280,000 |
Russia | Siberian Federal District | 19,254,300 |
Niger | All | 18,124,000 |
Kazakhstan | All | 16,137,000 |
Mali | All | 14,478,000 |
Zambia | All | 14,440,000 |
Russia | Northwestern Federal District | 13,583,800 |
Chad | All | 12,620,000 |
Russia | Ural Federal District | 12,082,700 |
Bolivia | All | 10,610,000 |
Somalia | All | 10,295,000 |
Sweden | All | 9,437,000 |
Brazil | Pará | 8,073,924 |
Papua New Guinea | All | 7,440,000 |
Paraguay | All | 6,844,000 |
Russia | Far Eastern Federal District | 6,291,900 |
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya | All | 5,918,217 |
China | Qinghai | 5,626,722 |
Turkmenistan | All | 5,411,000 |
Finland | All | 5,408,000 |
Norway | All | 4,985,000 |
Ireland | All | 4,804,000 |
New Zealand | All | 4,436,000 |
Central African Republic | All | 4,191,429 |
Brazil | Amazonas | 3,873,743 |
Mauritania | All | 3,623,000 |
Republic of the Congo | All | 3,609,851 |
Uruguay | All | 3,412,000 |
Brazil | Mato Grosso | 3,224,357 |
Lithuania | All | 3,173,000 |
Oman | All | 3,110,000 |
China | Tibet | 3,002,166 |
United States | Utah | 2,942,902 |
United States | Kansas | 2,904,021 |
Mongolia | All | 2,809,000 |
Brazil | Mato Grosso do Sul | 2,619,657 |
Namibia | All | 2,352,000 |
Latvia | All | 2,210,000 |
Botswana | All | 2,068,000 |
United States | Nebraska | 1,881,503 |
Brazil | Rondônia | 1,748,531 |
Argentina | Mendoza | 1,741,610 |
United States | Idaho | 1,634,464 |
Gabon | All | 1,597,000 |
Brazil | Tocantins | 1,496,880 |
Estonia | All | 1,338,000 |
Argentina | Salta | 1,215,207 |
Argentina | Chaco | 1,053,466 |
United States | Montana | 1,023,579 |
Argentina | Corrientes | 993,338 |
Cyprus | All | 911,000 |
Argentina | Santiago del Estero | 896,461 |
United States | South Dakota | 853,175 |
Fiji | All | 828,046 |
Brazil | Acre | 790,101 |
Guyana | All | 757,000 |
Brazil | Amapá | 750,912 |
United States | North Dakota | 739,482 |
United States | Alaska | 736,732 |
Argentina | San Juan | 680,427 |
Argentina | Jujuy | 672,260 |
Argentina | Río Negro | 633,374 |
Greece | Crete | 620,000 |
United States | Wyoming | 584,153 |
Argentina | Neuquén | 550,334 |
Suriname | All | 540,000 |
Argentina | Formosa | 527,895 |
Western Sahara | All | 507,160 |
Argentina | Chubut | 506,668 |
Brazil | Roraima | 496,936 |
Solomon Islands | All | 472,419 |
Argentina | San Luis | 431,588 |
Argentina | Catamarca | 367,820 |
Bahamas | All | 360,000 |
Iceland | All | 347,000 |
Belize | All | 335,000 |
Argentina | La Rioja | 331,847 |
France | Corsica | 322,000 |
Argentina | La Pampa | 316,940 |
Argentina | Santa Cruz | 272,524 |
Vanuatu | All | 267,000 |
New Caledonia | All | 266,000 |
French Guiana | All | 250,377 |
Guam | All | 165,124 |
Chile | Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena | 159,152 |
Argentina | Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur | 126,190 |
Micronesia | All | 103,549 |
Kiribati | All | 102,351 |
Chile | Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo | 98,413 |
Greenland | All | 57,475 |
Northern Mariana Islands | All | 53,855 |
Galapagos | All | 25,000 |
Palau | All | 20,918 |
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) | All | 3,000 |
Svalbard | All | 2,642 |
Norfolk Island | All | 2,169 |
French Southern and Antarctic Lands | All | 0 |
South Georgia South Sandwich Islands | All | 0 |
The “Red” Regions
Jurisdiction | Region | Population |
---|---|---|
Bangladesh | All | 172,019,000 |
India | Bihar | 99,000,000 |
India | West Bengal | 90,320,000 |
India | Jharkhand | 32,000,000 |
Markets
How Disinflation Could Affect Company Financing
History signals that after a period of slowing inflation—also known as disinflation—debt and equity issuance expands.


How Disinflation Could Affect Company Financing
The macroeconomic environment is shifting. Since the second half of 2022, the pace of U.S. inflation has been dropping.
We explore how this disinflation may affect company financing in Part 2 of our Understanding Market Trends series from Citizens.
Disinflation vs. Deflation
The last time inflation climbed above 9% and then dropped was in the early 1980’s.
Time Period | March 1980-July 1983 | June 2022-April 2023* |
---|---|---|
Inflation at Start of Cycle | 14.8% | 9.1% |
Inflation at End of Cycle | 2.5% | 4.9% |
* The June 2022-April 2023 cycle is ongoing. Source: Federal Reserve. Inflation is based on the Consumer Price Index.
A decrease in the rate of inflation is known as disinflation. It differs from deflation, which is a negative inflation rate like the U.S. experienced at the end of the Global Financial Crisis in 2009.
How might slowing inflation affect the amount of debt and equity available to companies?
Looking to History
There are many factors that influence capital markets, such as technological advances, monetary policy, and regulatory changes.
With this caveat in mind, history signals that both debt and equity issuance expand after a period of disinflation.
Equity Issuance
Companies issued low levels of stock during the ‘80s disinflation period, but issuance later rose nearly 300% in 1983.
Year | Deal Value |
---|---|
1980 | $2.6B |
1981 | $5.0B |
1982 | $3.6B |
1983 | $13.5B |
1984 | $2.5B |
1985 | $12.0B |
1986 | $24.2B |
1987 | $24.9B |
1988 | $16.9B |
1989 | $12.9B |
1990 | $13.4B |
1991 | $45.2B |
1992 | $50.3B |
1993 | $95.3B |
1994 | $63.7B |
1995 | $79.7B |
1996 | $108.7B |
1997 | $106.5B |
1998 | $97.0B |
1999 | $142.8B |
2000 | $156.5B |
Source: Bloomberg. U.S. public equity issuance dollar volume that includes both initial and follow-on offerings and excludes convertibles.
Issuance grew quickly in the years that followed. Other factors also influenced issuance, such as the macroeconomic expansion, productivity growth, and the dotcom boom of the ‘90s.
Debt Issuance
Similarly, companies issued low debt during the ‘80s disinflation, but levels began to increase substantially in later years.
Year | Deal Value | Interest Rate |
---|---|---|
1980 | $4.5B | 11.4% |
1981 | $6.7B | 13.9% |
1982 | $14.5B | 13.0% |
1983 | $8.1B | 11.1% |
1984 | $25.7B | 12.5% |
1985 | $46.4B | 10.6% |
1986 | $47.1B | 7.7% |
1987 | $26.4B | 8.4% |
1988 | $24.7B | 8.9% |
1989 | $29.9B | 8.5% |
1990 | $40.2B | 8.6% |
1991 | $41.6B | 7.9% |
1992 | $50.0B | 7.0% |
1993 | $487.8B | 5.9% |
1994 | $526.4B | 7.1% |
1995 | $632.7B | 6.6% |
1996 | $906.0B | 6.4% |
1997 | $1.3T | 6.4% |
1998 | $1.8T | 5.3% |
1999 | $1.8T | 5.7% |
2000 | $2.8T | 6.0% |
Source: Dealogic, Federal Reserve. Data reflects U.S. debt issuance dollar volume across several deal types including: Asset Backed Securities, U.S. Agency, Non-U.S. Agency, High Yield, Investment Grade, Government Backed, Mortgage Backed, Medium Term Notes, Covered Bonds, Preferreds, and Supranational. Interest Rate is the 10 Year Treasury Yield.
As interest rates dropped and debt capital markets matured, issuing debt became cheaper and corporations seized this opportunity.
It’s worth noting that debt issuance was also impacted by other factors, like the maturity of the high-yield debt market and growth in non-bank lenders such as hedge funds and pension funds.
Then vs. Now
Could the U.S. see levels of capital financing similar to what happened during the ‘80s disinflation? There are many economic differences between then and now.
Consider how various indicators differed 10 months into each disinflationary period.
January 1981 | April 2023* | |
---|---|---|
Inflation Rate Annual | 11.8% | 4.9% |
Inflation Expectations Next 12 Months | 9.5% | 4.5% |
Interest Rate 10-Yr Treasury Yield | 12.6% | 3.7% |
Unemployment Rate Seasonally Adjusted | 7.5% | 3.4% |
Nominal Wage Growth Annual, Seasonally Adjusted | 9.3% | 5.0% |
After-Tax Corporate Profits As Share of Gross Value Added | 9.1% | 13.8% |
* Data for inflation expectations and interest rate is as of May 2023, data for corporate profits is as of Q4 1980 and Q1 2023. Inflation is a year-over-year inflation rate based on the Consumer Price Index. Source: Federal Reserve.
The U.S. economy is in a better position when it comes to factors like inflation, unemployment, and corporate profits. On the other hand, fears of an upcoming recession and turmoil in the banking sector have led to volatility.
What to Consider During Disinflation
Amid uncertainty in financial markets, lenders and investors may be more cautious. Companies will need to be strategic about how they approach capital financing.
- High-quality, profitable companies could be well positioned for IPOs as investors are placing more focus on cash flow.
- High-growth companies could face fewer options as lenders become more selective and could consider alternative forms of equity and private debt.
- Companies with lower credit ratings could find debt more expensive as lenders charge higher rates to account for market volatility.
In uncertain times, it’s critical for businesses to work with the right advisor to find—and take advantage of—financing opportunities.

Learn more about working with Citizens.

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