We explain what the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the powers during World War II. In addition, their relationship with the development of war.
What was the GDP of the powers during World War II?
The GDP (Gross Domestic Product), also called GDP (Gross Domestic Product), is the production of final goods and services of a country during a certain period that is calculated in monetary values.
The GDP of the powers faced in World War II (1939-1945), calculated annually between the year before the beginning of the conflict (1938) and the last year of the war (1945), offers information on the relationship between economics and war development.
Key points
- During World War II, the greatest world power in terms of GDP was the United States, which almost doubled the magnitude of its production throughout the war.
- The combined GDP of the allies was superior to the axis powers since before the war, but the difference was reduced after the German conquest of France in 1940 and the attack against the Soviet Union in 1941.
- The allies recovered the economic advantage from 1942 and expanded it when the economy of Germany and Japan began to collapse in 1944. At the end of the conflict, the GDP of the allies was much higher than the axis.
In 1938, before the beginning of the war, the GDP of Nazi Germany surpassed that of the United Kingdom and France calculated separately. However, The combined GDP of the powers that would be part of the side of the allies (The United Kingdom, France, the Soviet Union and the United States) It was greater than the combined GDP of the powers that would form the axis side (Germany, Italy and Japan, with the inclusion of Austria that was annexed by Germany in 1938).
The difference was reduced when, the war has already started, Germany conquered France in 1940 (so he had access to French resources) and attacked the Soviet Union in 1941 (which caused a fall of Soviet GDP). However, From 1942 the balance began to bow in favor of the alliesnow headed not only by the United Kingdom but also by the Soviet Union and the United States (which entered the war in 1941).
The United States was already the greatest power in terms of GDP before war but its magnitude increased until almost double it. On the other hand, the Soviet Union managed to overcome the subsequent fall to the German attack of 1941 and, from 1943, significantly increased its level of production.
In addition, Italy was out of the axis when Benito Mussolini was dismissed in 1943 and the new Italian government signed the armistice. At the same time, the GDP of France occupied by the Nazis fell. Finally, The economy of Germany and Japan began to collapse in 1944.
Therefore, The GDP of the allies at the end of the war was superior to the axis powers in a proportion of 3.3: 1 (1944) and 5.1: 1 (1945). These data show that the allies achieved an important economic advantage from 1942 and that this advantage was combined with the properly military aspects to favor allied victory against the axis powers in 1945.
| GDP of the powers during World War II (In billions of dollars at prices from 1990) |
|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | [1945 | ||
| USA | 800 | 869 | 943 | 1,094 | 1,235 | 1,399 | 1,499 | 1,474 | |
| United Kingdom | 284 | 287 | 316 | 344 | 353 | 361 | 346 | 331 | |
| France | 186 | 199 | 82 | – | – | – | – | 101 | |
| Italy | – | – | – | – | – | – | 117 | 92 | |
| USSR | 359 | 366 | 417 | 359 | 318 | 464 | 495 | 396 | |
| Allies | 1,629 | 1,721 | 1,757 | 1,798 | 1.906 | 2,223 | 2,458 | 2,394 | |
| Germany | 351 | 384 | 387 | 412 | 417 | 426 | 437 | 310 | |
| France | – | – | 82 | 130 | 116 | 110 | 93 | – | |
| Austria | 24 | 27 | 27 | 29 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 12 | |
| Italy | 141 | 151 | 147 | 144 | 145 | 137 | – | – | |
| Japan | 169 | 184 | 192 | 196 | 197 | 194 | 189 | 144 | |
| Axis | 686 | 747 | 835 | 911 | 903 | 895 | 748 | 466 | |
| Allied ratio/axis | 2.4 | 23 | 2.1 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 5.1 | |
In the table, the advantage of the allies is expressed as a proportion of 2.4: 1. This proportion or ratio is obtained from dividing the GDP of the allies by the GDP of the axis.
References
- Aldcroft, DH (2003). History of the European economy 1914-2000. Criticism.
- Harrison, M. (ed.) (1998). The Economics of World War II. Six Great Powers in International Comparison. Cambridge University Press.
- OVERY, RJ (2016). The Oxford History of the Second World War. Taylor & Francis.
- Stone, N. (2013). Brief history of World War II. Ariel.
