China pips UK as 4th largest economy

By Philip Thornton

Hong Kong - China has overtaken the UK as the world's fourth-largest economy, it emerged on Tuesday in what will be seen as a key economic landmark for the new century.

Sources in Beijing have indicated that China's economy was much bigger than was thought. China is understood to have raised its estimate of the size of the economy in 2004 by $300 billion (R1.9 trillion), or 20 percent, to almost $2 trillion.

On official exchange rates used by the Bank of England, this would be worth £1.13 trillion (R12.6 trillion), putting it a whisker ahead of the UK's economy, which weighed in at £1.11 trillion.

Jim O'Neill, the head of global economics at Goldman Sachs - which forecast two years ago that China would overtake the UK by 2007 - said the watershed had come two years early.

With China expected to post nominal growth of 12.5 percent against the UK's 4.5 percent, it would "definitely" have overtaken this year. "If these figures are confirmed then it will mean that China will become the fourth-largest economy in the world," O'Neill said.

"The other important thing is that it probably means that the investment share of gross domestic product is lower than people had been talking about, which means that speculation about a investment bubble that will have to crash are misplaced."

In an influential report on Brazil, Russia, India and China two years ago, Goldmans forecast they would enjoy strong growth over the next 30 to 50 years, by which time only the US would still be ahead on pure size.

Julian Jessop, the chief international economist at Capital Economics, said: "It's another reflection of the importance of China in the world economy. This increases the case for China to join the Group of Seven, perhaps in place of one of the smaller countries like Canada."

- The Independent

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China's Economy Larger Than Thought


Morning Edition, December 15, 2005 · China has discovered $300 billion in its economy, thanks to an updated accounting system that is better able to track the private sector. Many expect revised economic data being released next week to show the country's economy to be about 20 percent larger than thought.
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http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5054596

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Haar Haaar,,
those are true examples to show people why exchange rate and offical GDP are
arbitrary and ridiculous as I explained many times. I summarize the changes
within 12 months in 2005:

1) China GDP grows 9.5% (a year long)
2) Currency appreciated 2.5% (over night)
3) *Discovered* $300 billion (+20%) GDP.


my goodness, $300b is roughly 45% of Indian GDP. It took India 7 years
to grow the same number from 1998 to 2005. which it only took a good night
of sleep for Chinese.

----------"We will eventually catch up China"------------

there is popular joke ,as shows the TRUTH of GDP,nothing but $hit .
----------------------------

two economists went on a street and one stumbled on a pile of $hit the economist felt very unlucky and said to the other:'if you can eat the pile of $hit , I would rather pay you 1 million US dollars.'

for 1 million dollars, the other ate up the pile of $hit at once.so the guy got 1 million dollars. but soon, he regreted haing eaten the pile of $hit for a million dollars and sick up all the pile of $hit . he got shameful and felt unfair .so he said to the guy who stumbled on the $hit just now:' if you eat up the pile of $hit i have sicked up,I will also pay you 1 million dollars"

the hearer was regretting paying one million dollars for a pile of $hit .therefore he got the chance and ate up the pile of $hit sicked up without any hesitater.so the guy also took back the one million dollars he had paid just several minutes ago.

when all $hit had be eate up, two economist finally found that no a penny had put into their wallets. so one complaint to his companion:"Geez,how silly we are? we both ate a pile of $hit but have not got even a penny for it! "
the other answered:'although we have got nothing but a pile of $hit ,we have contributed 2 miliion dollars for the nation' s GDP

Man becare full yoo, The mighty india is on its way and its already a world's biggest economy ever in the history, china and america are just minnows when it comes to might might india.

more rants from indians.. ----------- China 's growth is artificial-------Chinese rigged the Foriegn investment and it suppose to all in india--------------indian IT makes more money then all over chinese economy in last 1000 years-----------

-------> India shinning

If the recent revelations are a bit too shocking, I have a solution:
1. Since GDP figures are arbitrary, stop reporting GDP growth
2. Since exchange rate is ridiculous, stop using exchange rate
3. *Un-discovered* $300 billion

your joke rocks man it really prooves gdp is just a pile of $hit
and its funny you should of made the 2 economists indian than it would of been even more funny and proven the stupidity of some indians. a nations economy should not be just looked at by there gdp it should be looked at other things.
this joke is tooooo funny

back to the topic china pips uk as fourth largest economy chinese economy much larger than thought what do you think peaples send in replys.

SO it means by the end of this decade it will be no 2 beating Japan .

SO it means by the end of this decade it will be no 2 beating Japan

That depends on whether, and by how much, the Chinese currency appreciates against the US dollar