Markets
Mapped: GDP per Capita Worldwide
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Mapped: Visualizing GDP per Capita Worldwide
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GDP per capita has steadily risen globally over time, and in tandem, the standard of living worldwide has increased immensely.
This map using data from the IMF shows the GDP per capita (nominal) of nearly every country and territory in the world.
GDP per capita is one of the best measures of a country’s wealth as it provides an understanding of how each country’s citizens live on average, showing a representation of the quantity of goods and services created per person.
The Standard of Living Over Time
Looking at history, our standard of living has increased drastically. According to Our World in Data, from 1820 to 2018, the average global GDP per capita increased by almost 15x.
Literacy rates, access to vaccines, and basic education have also improved our quality of life, while things like child mortality rates and poverty have all decreased.
For example, in 1990, 1.9 billion people lived in extreme poverty, which was 36% of the world’s population at the time. Over the last 30 years, the number has been steadily decreasing — by 2030, an estimated 479 million people will be living in extreme poverty, which according to UN population estimates, will represent only 6% of the population.
That said, economic inequality between different regions is still prevalent. In fact, the richest country today (in terms of nominal GDP per capita), Luxembourg, is over 471x more wealthy than the poorest, Burundi.
Here’s a look at the 10 countries with the highest GDP per capita in 2021:
However, not all citizens in Luxembourg are extremely wealthy. In fact:
- 29% of people spend over 40% of their income on housing costs
- 31% would be at risk of falling into poverty if they had to forgo 3 months of income
The cost of living is expensive in Luxembourg — but the standard of living in terms of goods and services produced is the highest in the world. Additionally, only 4% of the population reports low life satisfaction.
Emerging Economies and Developing Countries
Although we have never lived in a more prosperous period, and poverty rates have been declining overall, this year global extreme poverty rose for the first time in over two decades.
About 120 million additional people are living in poverty as a result of the pandemic, with the total expected to rise to about 150 million by the end of 2021.
Many of the poorest countries in the world are also considered Least Developed Countries (LDCs) by the UN. In these countries, more than 75% of the population live below the poverty line.
Here’s a look at the 10 countries with the lowest GDP per capita:
Life in these countries offers a stark contrast compared to the top 10. Here’s a glance at the quality of life in the poorest country, Burundi:
- 80% of the population works in agriculture
- 1 in 3 Burundians are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance
- Average households spend up to two-thirds of their income on food
However, many of the world’s poorest countries can also be classified as emerging markets with immense economic potential in the future.
In fact, China has seen the opportunity in emerging economies. Their confidence in these regions is best exemplified in the Belt and Road initiative which has funneled massive investments into infrastructure projects across multiple African countries.
Continually Raising the Bar
Prosperity is a very recent reality only characterizing the last couple hundred years. In pre-modern societies, the average person was living in conditions that would be considered extreme poverty by today’s standards.
Overall, the standard of living for everyone today is immensely improved compared to even recent history, and some countries will be experiencing rapid economic growth in the future.
GDP per Capita in 2021: Full Dataset
Country | GDP per Capita (Nominal, 2021, USD) |
---|---|
🇱🇺 Luxembourg | $125,923 |
🇮🇪 Ireland | $90,478 |
🇨🇭 Switzerland | $90,358 |
🇳🇴 Norway | $76,408 |
🇺🇸 United States | $66,144 |
🇩🇰 Denmark | $63,645 |
🇸🇬 Singapore | $62,113 |
🇮🇸 Iceland | $58,371 |
🇳🇱 Netherlands | $58,029 |
🇸🇪 Sweden | $57,660 |
Australia | $57,211 |
Qatar | $55,417 |
Austria | $54,820 |
Finland | $54,817 |
Germany | $51,967 |
Belgium | $50,051 |
Macao SAR | $48,207 |
Hong Kong SAR | $47,990 |
Canada | $45,871 |
France | $44,770 |
San Marino | $44,676 |
Israel | $43,439 |
United Kingdom | $42,236 |
New Zealand | $41,793 |
Japan | $40,733 |
Italy | $35,062 |
United Arab Emirates | $32,686 |
South Korea | $32,305 |
Malta | $32,099 |
The Bahamas | $31,532 |
Puerto Rico | $31,207 |
Spain | $31,178 |
Europe | $31,022 |
Cyprus | $29,686 |
Taiwan | $28,890 |
Slovenia | $28,734 |
Estonia | $26,378 |
Brunei | $26,274 |
Czech Republic | $25,991 |
Portugal | $25,097 |
Bahrain | $23,710 |
Kuwait | $23,138 |
Lithuania | $22,752 |
Aruba | $22,710 |
Slovakia | $21,606 |
Saudi Arabia | $20,742 |
Greece | $20,521 |
Latvia | $19,934 |
Hungary | $17,645 |
Barbados | $17,472 |
Poland | $16,740 |
Trinidad and Tobago | $16,622 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | $16,491 |
Croatia | $16,402 |
Uruguay | $16,297 |
Romania | $14,916 |
Antigua and Barbuda | $14,748 |
Oman | $14,675 |
Panama | $14,390 |
Chile | $14,209 |
Maldives | $14,194 |
Palau | $13,180 |
Seychelles | $12,648 |
Costa Rica | $11,805 |
China | $11,713 |
Malaysia | $11,378 |
Bulgaria | $11,349 |
Russia | $10,793 |
Saint Lucia | $10,636 |
Grenada | $10,211 |
Guyana | $9,913 |
Nauru | $9,865 |
Mauritius | $9,630 |
Kazakhstan | $9,454 |
Montenegro | $9,152 |
Argentina | $9,095 |
Turkmenistan | $8,874 |
Serbia | $8,444 |
Mexico | $8,403 |
Dominica | $8,111 |
Equatorial Guinea | $8,000 |
Gabon | $7,785 |
Dominican Republic | $7,740 |
Thailand | $7,675 |
Iran | $7,668 |
Turkey | $7,659 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | $7,401 |
Botswana | $7,036 |
North Macedonia | $6,933 |
Brazil | $6,728 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | $6,536 |
Belarus | $6,513 |
Peru | $6,229 |
Jamaica | $5,643 |
Ecuador | $5,589 |
Colombia | $5,457 |
South Africa | $5,236 |
Paraguay | $5,207 |
Albania | $5,161 |
Tonga | $4,949 |
Suriname | $4,921 |
Fiji | $4,822 |
Iraq | $4,767 |
Kosovo | $4,753 |
Libya | $4,733 |
Georgia | $4,714 |
Moldova | $4,527 |
Armenia | $4,427 |
Namibia | $4,412 |
Azerbaijan | $4,404 |
Guatemala | $4,385 |
Jordan | $4,347 |
Tuvalu | $4,296 |
Indonesia | $4,287 |
Mongolia | $4,139 |
Marshall Islands | $4,092 |
Samoa | $4,053 |
El Salvador | $4,023 |
Micronesia | $3,995 |
Belize | $3,968 |
Sri Lanka | $3,928 |
Vietnam | $3,759 |
Eswatini | $3,697 |
Cabo Verde | $3,675 |
Bolivia | $3,618 |
Ukraine | $3,615 |
Egypt | $3,606 |
Philippines | $3,602 |
North Africa | $3,560 |
Algeria | $3,449 |
Bhutan | $3,447 |
Morocco | $3,409 |
Tunisia | $3,380 |
Djibouti | $3,275 |
West Bank and Gaza | $3,060 |
Vanuatu | $2,967 |
Laos | $2,614 |
Papua New Guinea | $2,596 |
Honduras | $2,593 |
Côte d'Ivoire | $2,571 |
Solomon Islands | $2,501 |
Ghana | $2,300 |
Republic of Congo | $2,271 |
Nigeria | $2,209 |
São Tomé and Príncipe | $2,133 |
Angola | $2,130 |
Kenya | $2,122 |
India | $2,031 |
Bangladesh | $1,990 |
Uzbekistan | $1,836 |
Nicaragua | $1,828 |
Kiribati | $1,817 |
Mauritania | $1,782 |
Cambodia | $1,680 |
Cameroon | $1,657 |
Senegal | $1,629 |
Venezuela | $1,586 |
Myanmar | $1,441 |
Comoros | $1,431 |
Benin | $1,400 |
Timor-Leste | $1,273 |
Kyrgyzstan | $1,270 |
Nepal | $1,166 |
Tanzania | $1,132 |
Guinea | $1,067 |
Lesotho | $1,018 |
Zambia | $1,006 |
Mali | $992 |
Uganda | $971 |
Ethiopia | $918 |
Tajikistan | $851 |
Burkina Faso | $851 |
Guinea-Bissau | $844 |
Rwanda | $820 |
The Gambia | $809 |
Togo | $759 |
Sudan | $714 |
Chad | $710 |
Haiti | $698 |
Liberia | $646 |
Eritrea | $632 |
Yemen | $573 |
Niger | $567 |
Madagascar | $554 |
Central African Republic | $522 |
Zimbabwe | $516 |
Afghanistan | $506 |
Democratic Republic of the Congo | $478 |
Sierra Leone | $471 |
Mozambique | $431 |
Malawi | $397 |
South Sudan | $323 |
Burundi | $267 |
Editor’s note: Readers have rightly pointed out that Monaco is one of the world’s richest countries in GDP per capita (nominal) terms. This is true, but the IMF dataset excludes Monaco and lists it as “No data” each year. As a result, it is excluded from the visualization(s) above.
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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