Brazil Out, South Korea In Top 10 Biggest Economies

Brazil dropped out of the world’s 10 biggest economies in 2020 and was replaced by South Korea due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an analysis conducted by CNBC.

• Global superpowers the United States, China, Japan, and Germany remained as the top economies, based on economic forecasts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• India slipped to sixth place behind the United Kingdom in 2020 due to strict lockdowns imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19. It was the fifth largest in 2019.
• Brazil was the sole country that was removed from the top 10 ranking, after falling to the 12th largest economy in 2020. it is projected to stay out of the list at least in the next five years.
• Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro has continued to refuse a nationwide lockdown to contain the pandemic, even as the country reported the third-highest caseload and second-highest death rate globally.
• South Korea climbed to the 10th place and is projected to stay in the list at least until 2026.
• Economists project South Korea’s manufacturing and export sectors to remain strong and push the economy up 3.6% this year from the modest 1% growth in 2020.