India overtakes Japan to become the 4th largest economy in the world

Q: Q2. According to the International Monetary Fund, India is expected to become the world’s third-largest economy by—?

Answer: 2028. It is expected to overtake Germany.

Q: Q3. Who is BVR Subrahmanyam, who was in the news recently?

Answer: Chief Executive Officer of the NITI Aayog

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Updated: 26 May 2025

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India overtakes Japan to become the 4th largest economy in the world

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With a gross domestic product (GDP) at market price of $4.187 trillion, India has overtaken Japan to emerge as the world’s fourth-largest economy. This was stated by NITI Aayog’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) BVR Subrahmanyam.

He was speaking after the conclusion of the 10th NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting, which was held in New Delhi on 24 May 2025. The Governing Council is the highest decision-making body of the NITI Aayog, chaired by the Prime Minister.

India to overtake Germany by 2028

In its flagship ‘World Economic Outlook’ report, released in April 2025, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted that India would overtake Japan in 2025 to become the world’s fourth-largest economy and overtake Germany by 2028 to become the world’s third-largest economy.

BVR Subrahmanyam, quoting the IMF figure, said that the Indian economy at the market price was $4.187 trillion compared to Japan’s $4.186 trillion. Despite India overtaking Japan, there is a vast difference in their per capita incomes. Japan's per capita income was $33,960 compared to India's $2,880.

India to remain the world’s fastest-growing economy

According to the IMF, the Indian economy is expected to grow by 6.2 % and 6.3% respectively in 2025-26 and 2026-27.
India will remain the fastest-growing major economy in the world, and the IMF expects Indian gross domestic product (GDP) at market price to be $5.58 trillion by 2028.
The IMF has forecasted a weak German economic growth rate in the next couple of years due to the tariff wars initiated by American President Donald Trump. The German economy is expected to register a 0 % growth rate in 2025 and 0.6 % in 2026. The IMF expects German GDP to be $5.25 trillion by 2028.
Thus, India is expected to overtake Germany in 2028 and become the third-largest economy in the world.