In constant 2000 USD. Source: World Bank.

World GDP and GDP per Capita, 2004

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total output of goods and services for final use produced by an economy, by both residents and non-residents. It is equal to consumption plus gross capital formation plus exports, less imports and includes subsistence products produced by households for their own use, valued at current local prices for comparable commodities. The GDP is a reasonable approximation of the size of a market, but not necessarily of the standards of living. For instance, it is clear on the above map that China has a higher GDP than Korea, implying that China is a bigger market, but Korea is a more sophisticated economy.

The GDP is often divided by the population to express the standard of living of a population since it is a rough approximation of the amount of wealth per person (there are issues of wealth distribution that are not well reflected in GDP per capita figures). The World Bank often uses GDP per capita to classify the level of economic development of nations, as displayed on the above map. The wealthiest nations (a GDP per capita of more than $20,000) account for the largest markets in the world.