The Contrast With Today
If we jump just over a hundred years to the beginning of the 21st century, we see a very changed world. Now, the dominant economy by far is that of the United States of America, followed by Japan, China and Germany. The United Kingdom vies with France and Italy for the position of the worlds fifth/sixth/seventh largest economy, but by many other methods of calculation it falls behind. In terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in 1998 it was No.11, in GDP growth it was No.13. And in industrial output growth it was No.16. In other words, it is still a large economy but it is not so efficient and is not growing so quickly as other countries, and has long ago been overtaken in size by several of them.
Reasons For Comparative Decline
One reason for the decline of the British economy when compared to the rest of the world is simply that the rest of the world developed more and faster. The United States of America, for example, spent the 19th century expanding and developing its own frontiers, and at the same time exploited and used its huge natural resources. By the time of the First World War it had already overtaken the British Empire in the size of its navy and its industry. Today, its population is five times as large as that of Britain, at least as welleducated if not better, and its natural resources are greater. It is therefore not surprising that its overall economy is correspondingly larger, though the fact that its GDP per capita is nearly 50% higher. Although declining in overall status, Britain has known steady and beneficent growth, which has resulted in a lifestyle for the common man and woman unequalled in history. Its decline is only comparative decline. Furthermore, it is a country in which others have confidence, as is shown by the fact that it ranks the third overall only to the United States and China as a destination for international investment, and is itself the worlds third largest international investor, again after the United States and China.
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