Taipei, Dec. 25, 2020 (Xinhua) — Taiwan ranked the 14th richest country among the world’s 193 countries and regions in 2023, according to an analysis by Global Finance based on purchasing power-adjusted GDP per capita.
According to the global rankings issued by the magazine last week, Ireland was listed as the richest country in the world, ahead of Luxembourg (2), Singapore (3), Qatar (4), Macau (5), and the United Arab Emirates (6). ), Switzerland (7), Norway (8), the United States (9), and San Marino (10).
Brunei Darussalam (11), Hong Kong (12) and Denmark (13) also ranked second, ahead of Taiwan.
Among other notable economies, Germany ranked 19th, South Korea 30th, the United Kingdom 31st, Japan 38th, Russia 60th and China 77th, according to the report.
The magazine said that its rankings are based on data on per capita gross domestic product issued by the International Monetary Fund, which is adjusted to take into account inflation rates and the cost of domestic goods and services in each economy.
The resulting figure, known as purchasing power parity, is expressed in international dollars to allow comparisons between different countries, the report said.
The report noted that the top rankings included many small countries that punched above their weight economically, often due to their sophisticated financial systems, tax systems to attract foreign investment, and large reserves of hydrocarbons or other natural resources.
Citing the International Monetary Fund, the magazine also warned that some of the figures should be taken with caution, as several countries in the rankings, including No. 1 Ireland, are tax havens.
This means that these countries’ wealth “was originally generated elsewhere, artificially inflating their GDP,” the report said, often benefiting multinational corporations far more than the average person.