China rolls in at number two
(We’re still a bit more interested that it will overtake Australian wine production by 2012, but that could just be us.)
Although Japan’s economy expanded 3.9 percent in 2010, it wasn’t enough to hold off China’s surge. Japan's nominal GDP last year came to US$5.4742 trillion, to China’s $5.8786 trillion.
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Japan has held the title “Second largest economy in the world” since 1968.
The next economy on China’s “to do” list: that would be the United States. ChinaPost reports on experts' predictions that China will be the world’s largest economy between 2020 and 2030.
Although the Chinese economy has overtaken the Japanese, China still has a far smaller GDP per person than Japan when purchasing power differences in each country are taken into account, but even that is changing.
Thoughout 2010 and into 2011 Japan has sought out Chinese tourists and is doing all it can to tempt them to the island nation.
A record 1.41 million Chinese tourists visited Japan last year, according to the Daily Record, and Japan also eased visa requirements for Chinese tourists to Japan last year.
A new low cost airline will also connect the two nations in late 2011.
"As an economy, we are not competing for rankings, but working to improve citizens' lives," said Japan's economy minister Kaoru Yosano to reporters after the GDP data was released.
"We welcome China's economic advancement as a neighboring country."
As the news hits China, Chinese people are reacting with a mix of celebration and trepidation at what lies ahead.
“In the 30 or more years since reform and opening began, owing to the ceaseless efforts of a few generations of individuals, the rapid maturation of the Chinese economy has really captured the attention of the world,” said Robin Li, CEO of Baidu to the Wall Street Journal.
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“Now China has emerged as the world’s second largest economy. But there’s still the undeniably awkward fact that China still has yet to produce an enterprise with truly global influence commensurate with China’s rising power. This is really an abnormal phenomenon. Whether you’re talking about the U.S.’s IBM or GE, Japan’s Sony or Toyota, or Korea’s Samsung or Hyundai, one has only to mention these countries and people easily connect them with these globally influential companies.”
“From the point of view of one situated in China’s burgeoning Internet sector,” she continues, “where we’ve come up from the beginning through free market competition, I believe China’s Internet industry has the responsibility to try and go global and compete internationally.”
Now that question is, what will the Chinese economy numbers look like when it finishes the world's largest city?
