China, Japan, and South Korea, as Asian nations, have always attracted attention due to their economies.

Moreover, many people compare the economies of the developed countries, Japan and South Korea, with that of China, a developing country.

Last year, Japan's GDP reached 4.2 trillion USD, while South Korea's was 1.71 trillion USD.

In comparison, what is the GDP of our "developing country"?

In the first half of 2024, the economies of China, Japan, and South Korea showed different development trends.

China's economy demonstrated strong recovery momentum in the post-pandemic era.

This was mainly due to the Chinese government's timely adjustment of epidemic prevention and control strategies, actively promoting economic and social development, and effectively stimulating the vitality of market entities.

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At the same time, the effects of expanding domestic demand policies further emerged, the consumer market accelerated its recovery, and investment grew steadily.

These measures provided strong support for economic recovery.

In contrast, although the Japanese economy also showed a certain degree of recovery, the growth momentum was clearly insufficient.

Despite the Japanese government's introduction of a large-scale fiscal stimulus plan, the economy struggled to achieve a strong rebound due to structural factors such as weak domestic demand and an aging population.

South Korea's economy continued its recovery trend in the first half of 2024, with improvements in both exports and domestic demand.

However, under the influence of global economic fluctuations, the downward pressure remained significant.

The South Korean government took a series of measures, such as increasing support for small and medium-sized enterprises and issuing consumption vouchers to stimulate consumption, but the sustainability of economic recovery remains to be observed.

Overall, in the first half of 2024, the economies of the three Asian countries showed a clear trend of differentiation, with China leading the recovery, Japan's economy lingering at a low level, and South Korea's economy showing signs of improvement but with greater uncertainty.

So, specifically for Japan, how was its economic performance in 2023?

In 2023, Japan's economy fell into a predicament of "low growth, high debt, and high inflation."

According to data released by the Japanese Cabinet Office, Japan's GDP in 2023 was 4.2 trillion USD, with a year-on-year growth rate of only 0.5%, a new low in recent years.

This was mainly due to the continued sluggish domestic demand in Japan, weak growth in consumption and investment, coupled with the negative impact of the global economic slowdown on exports.

Faced with the economic downturn, the Japanese government and the central bank adopted a series of loose policies to try to inject vitality into the economy.

The Bank of Japan maintained its ultra-low interest rate policy and expanded its asset purchase scale.

At the same time, the Japanese government introduced a large-scale fiscal stimulus plan, increasing support for small and medium-sized enterprises and low-income groups.

However, the effects of these policies were limited and could not fundamentally reverse the downward trend of the economy.

In the long term, Japan's economy faces many structural challenges.

An aging population leads to labor shortages, rising social security expenditures, and huge fiscal pressures.

There is also a lack of innovation capability; currently, Japan lags behind other developed countries in fields such as the digital economy and artificial intelligence.

So, even though Japan is now the world's fourth-largest economy, it is only maintaining itself on the old capital, and in fact, Japan has begun to show signs of decay.

In comparison, although South Korea's economy is not as large as Japan's, it is more active.

So, what was the GDP growth rate and specific performance of South Korea in 2023?

According to data from the Bank of Korea, South Korea's GDP growth rate in 2023 reached 1.4%, mainly due to the South Korean government's effective epidemic prevention and control measures, active fiscal and monetary policies, and the strong performance of leading industries such as semiconductors.

The rapid recovery of South Korea's economy highlights the advantages and resilience of its economic structure.

After all, South Korea has a complete modern industrial system and has global competitiveness in fields such as semiconductors, electronics, automobiles, and shipbuilding.

At the same time, South Korea's economy has a high degree of outwardness, is good at seizing global market opportunities, actively participates in regional economic cooperation, and the South Korean government values technological innovation, vigorously develops the digital economy, and cultivates a group of vibrant innovative enterprises.

However, South Korea's economic development also faces some potential risks and challenges.

The uncertainty of the global economic recovery, the rise of trade protectionism, and the increase in geopolitical risks may all impact South Korea's exports.

As for domestic issues, the intensification of an aging population, high household debt, hidden asset bubble risks, and the rise of economic and financial fragility have all caused a lot of trouble for South Korea.

Last year, South Korea's ranking fell out of the top 10, ranking 13th in the world, a result far behind Japan, so the South Korean government is also very anxious.

Now, the South Korean government is changing various strategies, and we still need to wait and see whether the future results will be good.

So, as China, the world's second-largest economy, how much was our GDP last year?

In 2023, China's economy continued to grow steadily, with a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 17.78 trillion USD.

This was mainly due to the Chinese government's insistence on a steady and progressive work overall tone, coordinating epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development, and effectively dealing with the uncertainty of the external environment and the imbalance of domestic economic recovery.

The stable operation of China's economy is due to its ultra-large market advantage and a complete industrial system.

China has a population of 1.4 billion and more than 400 million middle-income groups, with huge potential for consumption upgrades.

Compared with South Korea, China's economy is not only larger in total but also more stable in growth, and the price level is relatively lower.

However, China's economic development also faces some challenges.

First, the weak global economic recovery and weak external demand increase the pressure on export growth.

Second, small and medium-sized enterprises face difficulties in production and operation, and employment pressure remains significant.

To deal with these challenges, the Chinese government will continue to implement proactive fiscal policies and prudent monetary policies, increase the intensity of macro policy cross-cycle adjustment, and promote economic operation within a reasonable range.

In general, although China's economy faced many challenges in 2023, it still maintained a high growth rate and strong resilience.

Looking forward, as China fully builds a moderately prosperous society and accelerates the construction of a new development pattern, the economy is expected to achieve high-quality development, and people's lives will be better.

As the world's second-largest economy, China's progress and development are obvious to all, and from the performance of our country in the first half of this year, this year's GDP is expected to surpass last year.

I believe that in the future, our country's development will become stronger and stronger!