Which countries ruled the world the decade you were born?

The 10 richest countries from 1940 to 2000

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Want to know which countries ruled the roost the decade you arrived on the planet?

Using GDP data in 1990 international Geary-Khamis dollars, compiled by economist Angus Maddison, and figures from Our World in Data, also in international dollars, read on as we reveal the world's 10 biggest economies from 1940 to 2010.

The 1940s

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The global economy was worth a total of $4.5 trillion (£3.5 trillion) in 1940, with the USA leading the way, as it had done so since the late 19th century. America's GDP totalled $930 billion (£727 billion) and its share of the global pie was 20.7% at the time.

The 1940s

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Exiting the Great Depression, the nation's economy would be revitalised by the Second World War, which the US entered in 1941. The Soviet Union, which was also on the eve of war in 1940, had the second largest economy with a GDP of $429 billion (£336 billion).

The 1940s

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Nazi Germany was next. The brutal regime, which invaded Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands and France in 1940, had a GDP of $377 billion (£295 billion). The UK, which was the only country left fighting the Nazis by the end of 1940, was in fourth position. Its GDP was $331 billion (£259 billion).

The 1940s

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GDP data for China is missing for 1940, but the nation is likely to have had the world's fifth largest economy. India's economy was worth $265 billion (£207 billion) in 1940, while Imperial Japan, which joined the Axis alliance in 1940 and would attack the US the following year, had a GDP of $210 billion (£164 billion).

The 1940s

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Occupied France was next with a GDP of $166 billion (£130 billion), followed by Italy, which was under Mussolini's fascist dictatorship. Indonesia, making its final appearance in the top 10, had the world's ninth largest economy with a GDP of $87 billion (£68 billion), with Canada's GDP of $63 billion (£49 billion) placing the country 10th.

The 1950s

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The 1950s was a decade of spectacular economic growth and increasing prosperity around the world as countries recovered from the horrors of the Second World War. At the start of the decade the global economy was worth a total of $5.3 trillion (£4 trillion) with America out in front.

The 1950s

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Buoyed on by massive post-war infrastructure spending and skyrocketing industrial output, the US economy boomed during this time. In 1950, the country's GDP topped $1.5 trillion (£1.2 trillion) and made up a hefty 28.3% of the global economy, with annual growth peaking at a whopping 13.4%.

The 1950s

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The Soviet Union had the world's second largest economy. The GDP of America's Cold War nemesis totalled $510 billion (£398 billion) in 1950 and would grow significantly over the following 10 years. The UK was next with a GDP of $348 billion (£271 billion).

The 1950s

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An economic powerhouse during the 1950s, the UK “never had it so good” according to the then Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. War-ravaged West Germany, which was on the verge of its very own mainly US-financed economic miracle in 1950, was number four with a GDP of $265 billion (£207 billion).

The 1950s

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China's GDP in 1950 was $245 billion (£191 billion), while India was in sixth place with an economy worth $222 billion (£173 billion), ahead of France, which had a GDP of $220 billion (£172 billion). Italy was the world's eighth largest economy in 1950, followed by Japan, and Canada in the number 10 spot.

The 1960s

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By 1960, the post-war economic boom, aka the Golden Age of Capitalism, was in full swing. America was still out in front by a long margin but was beginning to lose its dominance. The nation's GDP of $2 trillion (£1.6 trillion) in 1960 represented 23.8% of the $8.4 trillion (£6.6 trillion) global economy, down 4.5% from 1950.

The 1960s

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The Soviet Union held on to second place with a GDP of $843 billion (£657 billion), though growth slowed in the early 1960s as the Khrushchev regime spent lavishly on its armed forces and space programme.

The 1960s

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West Germany had built a formidable manufacturing base by 1960 (the so-called Wirtschaftswunder or 'Miracle on the Rhine'), overtaking the UK with a GDP of $558 billion (£435 billion) against the UK's $453 billion (£353 billion).

The 1960s

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China's economy, which was being damaged severely by Chairman Mao's catastrophic Great Leap Forward, was worth $442 billion (£345 billion) in 1960. While China's economy was floundering, Japan's was thriving with a GDP of $375 billion (£292 billion) and rising. In fact, Japan enjoyed the fastest economic growth in the world during this period.

The 1960s

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France's economy was the world's seventh largest in 1960 followed by India, Italy and Brazil, which outpaced Canada to take the 10th spot with a GDP of $167 billion (£130 billion). The South American nation experienced rapid industrialisation at this time with annual growth averaging 6%.

The 1970s

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The 1970s was the decade when the post-war economic boom finally came to an end. In 1970, America was still number one with a GDP of $2 trillion (£1.6 trillion), but its share of the global economy, which was worth $8.4 trillion (£6.6 trillion) at this point, had slipped slightly to 22.5%, a decrease of 1.3% compared to 1960.

The 1970s

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The economy of the Soviet Union was worth $1.3 trillion (£1 trillion) in 1970 thanks to reforms enacted by the Brezhnev regime during the mid-1960s. Japan had moved from the world's sixth largest economy in 1960 to the planet's third biggest in 1970.

The 1970s

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Now a fully fledged developed nation, Japan had a powerful manufacturing base and was about to transition to a service-driven economy. Its GDP in 1970 had swelled to a bumper $1 trillion (£780 billion).

The 1970s

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Prosperous West Germany was the world's fourth largest economy in 1970 with a GDP of $843 billion (£657 billion), followed by China, which was beginning to recover from the disastrous economic policies of the 1960s. Its GDP stood at $637 billion (£497 billion).

The 1970s

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The UK, which was entering a period of de-industrialisation and economic decline, had fallen to sixth place with a GDP of $599 billion (£468 billion), followed by France, Italy, India and Brazil, which had an economy worth $292 billion (£227 billion) in 1970.

The 1980s

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In 1980, the global economy was worth a humongous $20 trillion (£15.6 trillion). America remained the largest economy with a GDP of $3.1 trillion (£2.4 trillion), but its share of the global pie had fallen again compared to the previous 10 years, down by 1.5% from 1970.

The 1980s

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The US economy went from recession to boom during the decade. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, was entering a terminal period of economic decline in 1980, although its GDP of $1.7 trillion (£1.3 trillion) was second only to America's.

The 1980s

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Japan boasted the world's third largest economy in 1980 with a GDP of $1.6 trillion (£1.3 trillion), edging ever closer to the number two spot. West Germany was next. Bolstered by its robust manufacturing base, the country's GDP had risen to $1.1 trillion (£858 billion).

The 1980s

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China launched a series of market reforms in the late 1970s that went on to transform the nation's economy. In 1980, China's GDP had soared to $1 trillion (£780 billion). France had the world's sixth largest economy in 1980 with a GDP of $814 billion (£635 billion), having overtaken the ailing UK.

The 1980s

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Like the US, the UK was in recession at the start of the 1980s but was booming by the end of the decade. Its GDP was $718 billion (£560 billion) in 1980. Italy was in eighth place, while Brazil had climbed to ninth, with India in the number 10 spot.

The 1990s

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In 1990, the global economy totalled $27.1 trillion (£21 trillion). Yet again, the USA had the largest economy. The nation's GDP had grown to $5.8 trillion (£4.5 trillion), and remarkably, the US had increased its share of the global economy, which stood at 21.4% in 1990, up 0.4 percentage points from 1980.

The 1990s

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Japan had taken the second spot by 1990 with a GDP of $2.3 trillion (£1.8 trillion), but with its economy beginning to stagnate, China, which would go on to enact further market-friendly reforms, was catching up fast. Its GDP topped $2.1 trillion (£1.6 trillion) in 1990.

The 1990s

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Reunified Germany was next. The country, which united on 3 October 1990, had a GDP of $1.3 trillion (£1 trillion) in 1990. The Soviet Union, which was teetering on collapse in 1990 and would break up the following year, had fallen down the rankings. Its GDP had slumped to $1.2 trillion (£936 billion).

The 1990s

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In contrast, India had risen up the rankings following economic reforms in the 1980s that boosted the economy, its GDP standing at $1.1 trillion (£858 billion) in 1990. France held its lead over the UK. The French economy was worth $1 trillion (£780 billion) in 1990 compared to the UK's, which had a GDP of $945 billion (£737 billion).

The 1990s

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Italy's GDP was $926 billion (£722bn) in 1990, putting the country in ninth place, down from the eighth spot in 1980, though the liberalisation of the economy during the decade would push the country up the rankings. Also down a place, Brazil was the world's 10th largest economy with a GDP of $744 billion (£580bn).

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The 2000s

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At the turn of the millennium the global economy hit a staggering $36.7 trillion (£28.6trn). Needless to say, the US was number one in 2000 with a GDP of $8 trillion (£6.2trn), having increased its share of the global economy to 21.8%, up 0.4 percentage points from 1990. Strong economic growth prevailed in America from the mid-1990s to 2008.

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The 2000s

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China had become the world's second largest economy by 2000 off the back of further sweeping market reforms with its GDP topping $4.3 trillion (£3.4trn). Annual growth would go on to average 10% during the decade. China is now on course to be the world's biggest economy by 2030.

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The 2000s

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While the Japanese economy had entered a long period of stagnation by 2000, its GDP totalled an enormous $2.7 trillion (£2.1trn). Booming India had surpassed Germany by 2000 to take the fourth spot. Its GDP was $1.9 trillion (£1.5trn) in 2000s.

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The 2000s

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Germany's GDP amounted to $1.6 trillion (£1.3trn) in 2000, followed by France's, which was $1.3 trillion (£1trn). The UK, now the world's seventh largest economy, down from the global number three in 1950, had a GDP of $1.2 trillion (£936bn).

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The 2000s

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Italy had moved up the rankings to land in the eighth spot with its GDP totalling $1.1 trillion (£858bn) in 2000, while Brazil was number nine. Russia, which saw its economy crash in the 1990s, had dropped to the 10th spot with its GDP down to $774 billion (£604bn).

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