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GDP

Text | Science 10 Grams

Editor | Science 10g

Preface

In 2000, the US GDP accounted for 25.68% of the world's GDP, while China only accounted for 3.02% . This gap is really huge.

Now, 24 years later, what is the GDP share of China and the United States respectively? Does the gap between the two countries still exist?

Chinese and American flag

The gap 24 years ago

Do you still remember the year 2000, 24 years ago?

At that time, there was a huge difference between China and the United States. As the world's largest economy, the United States accounted for more than a quarter of the world's GDP, while China's share of the world's GDP was not even a fraction.

At that time, the US GDP accounted for 25.68% of the world's share, which was the highest in the world. In contrast, China's GDP accounted for only 3.03%, which was really a dwarf compared with the United States.

But this is normal. After all, China's development has always started later than the United States. When they were building high-rise buildings, our Qing Dynasty had not yet completely fallen, so this gap is understandable.

America in 2000

What we are going to look at today is what changes have taken place in the development of China and the United States in the 24 years from 2000 to 2024. In these 24 years, the development of the United States and China can be said to be worlds apart.

Although the U.S. economy has been growing, from $1.2 trillion in 2000 to $27.4 trillion in 2023 , this growth rate is really average compared to the global level.

Coupled with some of the United States' own problems in recent years, such as growing debt and widening gap between the rich and the poor, the quality of its development is really not good.

Let's look at China. It's a different picture. China's GDP has increased 15 times in the past 24 years . China has gradually moved from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing powerhouse. Its high-tech industry is booming and the added value of its export products is getting higher and higher.

These changes in China can be said to be earth-shaking. It is completely different from what it was 24 years ago. So let us first take a look at the development of the United States in these 24 years.

Statue of Liberty

24 years of development

How has the United States developed over the past 24 years? At first glance, the U.S. economy has been growing over the years.

In 2000, the US GDP was 1.2 trillion US dollars, and by 2023 it had risen to 27.4 trillion US dollars , which is an increase of several times. But if you think about it carefully, you will find that the quality of this growth is really not good.

Although the U.S. economy has been growing, it has encountered many troubles in recent years.

In recent years, the United States' technology has become increasingly advanced. Technology giants such as Apple and Google are the backbone of the U.S. economy, but this has also brought new problems to the United States.

Google

As the science and technology industry becomes more and more developed, traditional industries are becoming increasingly declining. The large coastal cities that engage in science and technology are developing better and better, but those inland places that rely on traditional industries for their livelihood are not having an easy time.

This has led to a growing gap between the rich and the poor in the United States and more and more social conflicts.

Look at those technology companies in Silicon Valley, they are the pride of the United States. Programmers there easily earn hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, live in big villas and drive luxury cars.

But if you look at old industrial cities like Detroit, the workers there are living a very hard life. Factories are closing down one after another and everyone is worried about their livelihoods. The gap between the rich and the poor is extremely large.

Detroit

Let's talk about the US debt problem, which is getting more serious every year.

In recent years, the US government has been printing money and issuing treasury bonds crazily in order to stimulate the economy. Now the US fiscal deficit is getting bigger and bigger, and the total debt of the federal government has reached a record high. If this continues, the risk to the US economy will be considerable.

The US government now spends hundreds of billions of dollars every year just to pay off debt interest. How great would it be if this money could be used to improve people's livelihood? But now it's all gone to waste.

In order to repay its debts, the US government can only continue to print money and issue treasury bonds, which has formed a vicious cycle: the debt keeps growing and the risk keeps increasing.

Federal Reserve Building

To be honest, although the US economy has been growing in recent years, its quality is getting worse and worse. In addition, China has risen too fast in recent years, and the US's advantages are getting smaller day by day.

In terms of GDP share, the United States is still higher than China, but the gap is getting smaller and smaller. Perhaps if this continues, it is only a matter of time before China's economy surpasses that of the United States.

So, how fast is China's economic development?

News

China's development miracle

China's development in recent years has been truly earth-shaking. In 2000, China was still a developing country, and its total economic output did not even rank among the top ten in the world.

But now China is already the world's second largest economy. Although we are still a developing country, the gap with the first place, the United States, is getting smaller and smaller.

China's GDP in 2023 is 17.9 trillion US dollars, and in 2024 it is 18.5 trillion US dollars. It seems that there is still a gap with the US's more than 20 trillion US dollars, right? But you have to know that in 2000, China's GDP was only 122.7 billion US dollars.

This growth rate is a remarkable achievement for any country in the world, not to mention that China is a big country with a population of 1.4 billion. It is conceivable how difficult it is to feed so many people and develop the economy.

Shanghai in the past and Shanghai today

In fact, China's development in recent years is not just the growth of total GDP. China's trade volume has increased from US$474.3 billion in 2000 to US$6 trillion in 2024.

This shows that China has become a major trading country in the world, and products made in China are sold all over the world.

In addition, there has been another important change in China's development over the years.

That is, China has gradually moved from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing powerhouse. Although China's manufacturing industry was large in the past, it mainly relied on cheap labor to produce some low value-added products.

But now it is different. The technological content of China's manufacturing industry is getting higher and higher. High-tech products such as high-speed rail and 5G are the pride of China.

The picture comes from the Internet

These changes are inseparable from China's reform and opening up as well as scientific and technological innovation. In recent years, China has unswervingly promoted reform and opened its doors to learn advanced technology and management experience from around the world.

At the same time, China also attaches great importance to scientific and technological innovation, continuously increasing R&D investment and encouraging corporate innovation. These efforts have laid a solid foundation for China's economic take-off.

Of course, China’s development over the years has not been smooth sailing. For example, poverty is a major problem for China.

But the Chinese government did not back down. Instead, it rose to the challenge and launched a battle against poverty. Now China has lifted more than 700 million people out of poverty, successfully eliminating absolute poverty, which is also a miracle in human history.

The battle against poverty has achieved a comprehensive victory (Photo source: Xinhua News Agency)

Therefore, China's development in recent years has really attracted worldwide attention.

From an economically backward developing country to the world's second largest economy today, every step China has taken has not been easy. This is due to the correct leadership of the Chinese government, the hard work of the Chinese people, and the correct path of reform and opening up.

Of course, although China is developing very well now, there is still a gap compared with the United States. After all, the United States has been developing for so many years, and it is impossible for us to catch up in just 24 years.

So how should we view this gap?

China Import and Export Trade Port

There is still a gap, but not much

To be honest, although China has developed rapidly in recent years, there is still a gap compared with the United States. Take the global share of GDP as an example. In 2024, the United States will be 28.8% and China will be 18.5%.

Although this gap is much smaller than before, it is still not small. After all, the United States has developed for so many years and has accumulated strong economic strength. This advantage cannot be caught up in a short time.

However, although there is a gap between China and the United States, this gap is getting smaller and smaller. In 2000, the US GDP accounted for 25.68% of the world's share, while China's was only 3.03%. The gap was huge at that time.

But by 2024, the United States has dropped to 28.8% and China has dropped to 18.5%. The gap has narrowed a lot. If this trend continues, it won't take long for China to catch up with the United States.

GDP

Moreover, China's economy has been stable in recent years. The Chinese government attaches great importance to the quality and sustainability of economic development. It does not engage in large-scale stimulus but focuses on long-term structural adjustment and transformation and upgrading.

This means that although China's economic growth has slowed down, the quality and efficiency of its operations are getting higher and higher.

What about the US economy? There are a lot of problems there, the biggest of which is the debt problem. The US government has been owing more and more debts over the years, and now the total debt of the federal government has reached a record high.

Such a high debt is a time bomb. Once the economy fluctuates and a debt crisis breaks out, the consequences will be disastrous. It would be a small matter to say that there will be another financial crisis like the one in 2008.

US Treasury Bonds

Therefore, although there is still a gap between China and the United States, the Chinese economy has great potential in the long run. As long as China continues to adhere to reform and opening up and innovation-driven development, the prospects for development will be bright.

In comparison, although the US economy is still leading, the risks and hidden dangers are becoming increasingly greater.

Of course, although there is competition between China and the United States, they should strengthen cooperation. In recent years, the two countries have cooperated more and more in the fields of economy, trade, science and technology, and culture.

This kind of cooperation has not only brought huge benefits to the two countries, but also injected strong impetus into the development of the world economy. Therefore, the United States should remove those barriers that it has set up to enclose its own territory. Wouldn't it be great to achieve a win-win situation?

Now that the future has arrived, China's development momentum is bright. If the United States can recognize that its situation can be changed, it depends on whether they will continue to be stubborn.

Chinese and American flag

Conclusion

24 years have passed in the blink of an eye. Looking back to 2000, the gap between China and the United States was huge, but today, 24 years later, the world pattern has changed dramatically.

China's economy has developed rapidly, making it the world's second largest economy; although the US economy is leading, problems and risks are also accumulating.

These 24 years have witnessed China's development miracle. From a manufacturing power to a manufacturing powerhouse, from an economically backward country to a well-off country in all respects, every step China has taken has condensed the wisdom and sweat of hundreds of millions of people.

This miracle of development is worthy of the world's attention and admiration. I believe that in the future, China will continue to create more miracles.

Chinese Economy

Information sources:

National Bureau of Statistics: Statistical Communiqué of the People's Republic of China on the National Economic and Social Development in 2000

People's Daily: 2024 GDP data released!

Observer.com: Hou Feng: Biden left a message for China before leaving

China Economic Net: US economic growth still faces challenges

Securities Times: "Listening to the Waves from Overseas" The Nature of U.S. Debt and Its Evolution Trend

Qiu Chaobing: Power redistribution, domestic politics, and the future of Sino-US relations