Between 2005 and 2020, the GDP of China grew from 2.3 trillion to 14.9 trillion U.S. dollars. During the same time period the GDP of the United States grew from 13 trillion to 20.8 trillion dollars. It is estimated that, by 2030, China will overtake the U.S. as the world's largest economy, with a GDP of 33.7 trillion dollars, compared to 30.5 trillion dollars; this margin of more than three trillion is predicted to increase to almost 13 trillion over the subsequent five year period.

According to preliminary figures, the growth of real gross domestic product (GDP) in China amounted to 5.0 percent in 2024. For 2025, the IMF expects a GDP growth rate of around 3.95 percent. Real GDP growth The current gross domestic product is an important indicator of the economic strength of a country. It refers to the total market value of all goods and services that are produced within a country per year. When analyzing year-on-year changes, the current GDP is adjusted for inflation, thus making it constant. Real GDP growth is regarded as a key indicator for economic growth as it incorporates constant GDP figures. As of 2024, China was among the leading countries with the largest gross domestic product worldwide, second only to the United States which had a GDP volume of almost 29.2 trillion U.S. dollars. The Chinese GDP has shown remarkable growth over the past years. Upon closer examination of the distribution of GDP across economic sectors, a gradual shift from an economy heavily based on industrial production towards an economy focused on services becomes visible, with the service industry outpacing the manufacturing sector in terms of GDP contribution. Key indicator balance of trade Another important indicator for economic assessment is the balance of trade, which measures the relationship between imports and exports of a nation. As an economy heavily reliant on manufacturing and industrial production, China has reached a trade surplus over the last decade, with a total trade balance of around 992 billion U.S. dollars in 2024.

The statistic shows the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in the United States from 1987 to 2024, with projections up until 2030. In 2024, the gross domestic product per capita in the United States amounted to around 85,812.18 U.S. dollars. Thus, the United States is one of the countries with the largest GDP per capita worldwide. See the U.S. GDP growth rate here and the US GDP for further information. For comparison, per capita GDP in China had reached about 5,553 U.S. dollars in 2011. Gross domestic product of the United States The gross domestic product (GDP) of a country is an economic key figure, as it represents the market value of goods and services produced in a country within one year. The United States’ GDP) is increasing consistently, and it is expected to continue growing. On a global scale, the U.S. share of GDP adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity has been in the range of 20 percent over the last few years, give or take a few percentage points. The United States has the largest GDP worldwide, with a significant lead over China, Japan and Germany. Gross domestic product per capita is annual GDP divided by the average population from the same year, which allows for a GDP calculation per inhabitant of a country. Thus, a country with a high GDP, like the United States, can still have a low GDP per capita. Consequently, if compared to other countries, the United States does not rank among the top ten on this list .

In 2018, Germany’s GDP peaked at around four billion U.S. dollars, the highest GDP the country has reported in decades. It is predicted to grow towards 5.57 billion by 2030. Germany has the fourth-largest GDP in the world, after the United States, China, and Japan. The national debt of Germany has steadily been falling since 2012 and is now about a quarter of the size of Japan’s and half that of the United States. Development of GDP per capita Gross domestic product per capita in Germany has been increasing since 2015 and experienced its last period of decline between the mid-nineties and early noughties. In 2001, GDP per capita was the lowest it had been since the early nineties, but more than doubled by the time of the financial crisis in 2008. GDP per capita fluctuated throughout the subsequent decade, before reaching around 48,000 U.S. dollars in 2018. Largest economic sectors The service sector generates the highest share of GDP in Germany at nearly 70 percent. Finance and telecommunications are a large part of the service sector, as well as tourism – including hospitality and accommodation. Roughly a quarter of GDP currently comes from the production industry, not including construction. Agriculture, fishing, and forestry make up less than one percent.