1 G20 countries account for 85% of global GDP

This is the single most important statement about the G20’s economic importance in the global economy. To be sure, the formation of G20 was about diversifying the economic leadership of the global economy rather than concentrating it. In the wake of Asian Financial Crisis in 1999, finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of Seven countries (G7) – it is the club of advanced economies in the world – announced their intention to “broaden the dialogue on key economic and financial policy issues among systemically significant economies and promote co-operation to achieve stable and sustainable world economic growth that benefits all”. This announcement marked the official birth of what subsequently came to be known as the Group of Twenty countries (G20). The first official meeting of the G20 leaders took place in Washington DC in 2008, and since 2011, the G20 summit has been held annually with member countries taking rotational presidencies.

Data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) shows that the G20 economies together accounted for 85% of the global output in 2022, which is marginally lower than the 89% output share this group had in 1999. However, the economic dominance of this group becomes evident if one were to look at the population share of these economies in the world. In 2022, the G20 economies accounted for slightly more than 60% of the world population (62%), meaning that 40% of the world population share and live within the remaining 15% of the global output. The share of G7 countries in global GDP and population is 43% and 9.8%, which underlines the central faultline in the global economy – inequality.