President of National Rally and MEP, Jordan Bardella, was the morning guest for France Inter, Friday 2 December. During his interview, the politician stated that France “is the seventh world power”. Is this really happening?
While half of France’s 56 nuclear reactors have been shut down, Jordan Bardella (RN) has accused Emmanuel Macron and his Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, of being guilty of France’s energy poverty.
“Emmanuel Macron and Élisabeth Borne must apologize that, by arranging the shutdown of our nuclear sector for five to ten years, they have put France in a situation of energy poverty more reminiscent of the Third World than a developed country.” MEP.
In continuation of his speech, the politician stated : “We are in France in 2022, we are the seventh world power and we are told that power plants may potentially go out, that schools will have to close, that alarm systems in public buildings will no longer work, telecommunications networks will be the judgement”. But is our country really the 7th most powerful in the world? as stated by Jordan Bardella?
Three countries side by side
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) produces twice a year updates on economic data on the world. that “World Economic Outlook” published in April and October.
The world economic outlook in October 2023 shows France’s position. With an estimated GDP of 2806 billion in 2023, France has literally fallen in the ranking of world powers, now in 7th position.
That puts it behind Germany, with an estimated GDP of 4.120 billion, India with an estimated GDP of 3.820 billion. The UK is also right ahead of France, in 6th place with 3.479 billion. For several years the two countries have been battling for 6th place. In 2020, France for example has taken over its neighbor across the Channel, while London’s economy is more developed than Paris the year before, according to our colleagues from TF1.
The United States, China and Japan top the rankings.
Numbers with limits
Although these figures are produced by one of the most important financial institutions in the world, they are not 100% reliable as they are only projections.
Using only absolute GDP figures is also simple. Other indicators make it possible to establish a more representative classification. Listing each country’s growth allows, for example, to understand whether a country has generated wealth.
