Top 10 Largest Economies of 2016

When it comes to the top 10 national economies around the globe, the order may shift a bit, but the key players usually remain the same, and so does the name at the head of the list. The United States has been the world’s biggest economy since 1871. But that top ranking is now under threat from China. Since it initiated market reforms in 1978, the Asian giant has achieved economic growth averaging 10% annually (though it’s slowed recently) and, in the process, lifted almost half of its 1.3 billion population out of poverty and become the undisputed second-largest economy on Earth. China is estimated to pull ahead of the U.S. steadily in the following years, taking over the lead position as the world’s largest economy; in fact, in its October 2012 World Economic Outlook report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected that China’s gross domestic product (GDP) would outpace that of the U.S. as early as 2017. Using another measure known as purchasing power parity (PPP), it already has. Specifically, China’s GDP (based on 2005 PPP) is forecast by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) at $15.26 trillion for 2016, exceeding the forecasted U.S. GDP of $15.24 trillion for the very first time. Read more: The World's Top 10 Economies | Investopedia http://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/022415/worlds-top-10-economies.asp#ixzz4PXQHIYyA Follow us: Investopedia on Facebook ref: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/022415/worlds-top-10-economies.asp