“It is only US, China, Germany, which are larger than India and if we stick to what is being planned and what is being thought through, in 2.5-3 years, we will be the third largest economy,”NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam
New Delhi:, India has become the fourth largest economy in the world, overtaking Japan, NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam said on Saturday.
Briefing reporters after the 10th Governing Council meeting of Niti Aayog, Subrahmanyam said overall geopolitical and economic environment is favourable to India.
“We are the fourth largest economy as I speak. We are a USD 4 trillion economy as I speak,” he said.
Citing IMF data, Subrahmanyam said India today is larger than Japan.
“It is only US, China, Germany, which are larger than India and if we stick to what is being planned and what is being thought through, in 2.5-3 years, we will be the third largest economy,” Subrahmanyam.
Responding to a question on US President Donald Trump’s recent statement that he expects Apple iPhones that will be sold in the US to be manufactured in America and not India, or anyplace else, Subrahmanyam said, “What the tariff will be, is uncertain. Given the dynamics, we will be cheap place to manufacture.”
He also said that a second round of asset monetisation pipeline is being prepared and it will be announced in August.
According to the IMF’s April edition of the World Economic Outlook report, the nominal GDP for fiscal 2026 is expected to reach around USD 4,187.017 billion. This is marginally more than the likely GDP of Japan, which is estimated at USD 4,186.431 billion.
India was the fifth largest economy in the world till 2024.
The global financial body projects that India will remain the fastest-growing major economy over the next two years. India’s economy is expected to grow by 6.2 per cent in 2025 and 6.3 per cent in 2026, maintaining a solid lead over global and regional peers, the April 2025 edition of the IMF’s World Economic Outlook added.
India is projected to remain the fastest-growing large economy for 2025 and 2026, reaffirming its dominance in the global economic landscape.
In contrast, the IMF projects global economic growth to be much lower, at 2.8 per cent in 2025 and 3.0 per cent in 2026, highlighting India’s exceptional outperformance.
NITI Aayog CEO further stated that India is at a turning point and at a take-off stage where it can grow very, very rapidly.
Sharing more information on the matters discussed during the Governing Council Meeting, NITI Aayog’s CEO said that the Centre and States discussed the strategies for manufacturing services, rural, non-farm, urban, informal, and the green economy sectors.
“We had sub-themes for manufacturing services, rural, non-farm, urban, informal, and the green economy, as well as the circular economy. These were the broad themes that were there,” Subrahmanyam said, explaining the other details of the meeting that took place in New Delhi on Saturday.