India poised to surpass Japan in GDP

NEW DELHI:

India is expected to become the world's fourth-largest economy by 2027, overtaking Japan, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) projections that on Thursday laid out the Asian nations' contrasting trajectories.

The IMF said Japan would remain the fourth-largest country by nominal gross domestic product this year, but in 2027 India is set to take its place, with a GDP reaching $4.52 trillion.

Japan is slated to slip to sixth place that year, falling behind both India and the United Kingdom, the projection showed.

India has shown strong growth in recent years despite global economic headwinds, with the IMF this week raising its forecasts for 2026 growth to hit 7%.

Japan, by contrast, is plagued by an ageing population and other structural problems that have seen the Asian giant's growth stagnate.

The United States is the world's largest economy, followed by China and Germany.