Brazil, Canada and Russia Likely to Fare Worse than Korea
South Korea is expected to move up from 12th to ninth in the global GDP rankings this year even if it shows a negative economic growth this year. This is because the Brazilian, Canadian and Russian economies are likely to further shrink due to COVID-19.
The OECD announced on Aug. 10 that South Korea’s nominal GDP is estimated to reach 1,884.8 trillion won this year, with a year-on-year decrease of 1.8 percent, on condition that there will be no second wave of COVID-19. According to the OECD, the figure is equivalent to US$1,544.93 billion, which is the ninth-largest among those of 46 countries consisting of the 37 OECD member countries and nine major developing economies.
This year, the size of the U.S. economy is estimated at US$20,203.95 billion with a decrease in nominal GDP of 5.7 percent. China is likely to follow it with US$13,833.83 billion and be followed by Japan, Germany, India, the United Kingdom, France and Italy. No change in rankings is likely when it comes to the eight countries.
Canada, which came in 10th last year, is predicted to maintain its ranking even with a negative growth of 7.5 percent. Likewise, Russia is likely to remain in the 11th place although its growth for this year is estimated at negative 14.1 percent. On the other hand, Brazil is forecast to fall from ninth to 12th, due to its higher inflation rate and currency depreciation, although its negative growth estimate stands at 3.9 percent.
South Korea’s GNI per capita is likely to fall below US$30,000 from US$32,115 in spite of its rise in ranking. This is because the average annual won-dollar exchange rate has risen from 1,165 won to 1,200 won per U.S. dollar and the risk of negative growth has soared since the beginning of this year.