Economic power over 400 years

Today the headlines are dominated by conflict. There is a brutal war in Ukraine. There is now a major war in the Middle East involving the United States, Israel and Iran, with the risk that the conflict could spread across the region.

But the long sweep of economic history shows that instability is not unusual. Power shifts and the balance of the global economy changes.

In the 1600s the global economy was dominated by Asia. The Mughal Empire and China towered over the rest of the world. Europe was visible, but economically marginal.

Then something changed. Industrialisation transformed Britain and later Europe, and the United States. Factories, steam power and global trade networks shifted the centre of gravity westward.

For much of the twentieth century the hierarchy looked settled. The US sat firmly at the top while Europe and Japan followed. But the chart begins to move again.

China’s rise over the past forty years is one of the fastest economic expansions in recorded history. What the animation shows is that the global balance might be shifting back toward Asia.

So what does all this mean?

Across centuries the centre of economic power moves. It never stays in the same place forever. Although the world might seem scary now, visualising in this way can bring comfort. We're not living in unusual times. We're just living through history like it's always been. And the data here shows that.