India drops to 6th position in global GDP rankings
Even in 2026, India is expected to remain at the 6th spot, with GDP of around $4.15 trillion, below the UK’s projected GDP of $4.26 trillion.
New Delhi, Apr 16: In a depressing piece of news, India has slipped from 4th to 6th position in the global GDP rankings, according to the latest list released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The rankings list for 2025–26 places the Indian economy, with the estimated GDP of $3.92 trillion, behind the UK ($4 trillion) and Japan ($4.44 trillion).
The US remains on the top of the list with a GDP of $30.8 trillion, followed by China at $19.6 trillion and Germany at $4.7 trillion, according to the IMF’s April 2026 World Economic Outlook.
India had attained the 4th position for some time but slipped to 5th position in 2024 with the GDP of $3.5 trillion, ahead of the UK which had the GDP of $3.4 trillion.
Even though India’s GDP increased to Rs 318 trillion in 2024 and Rs 346.5 trillion in 2025, it appeared smaller when expressed in dollars.
Even in 2026, India is expected to remain at the 6th spot, with GDP of around $4.15 trillion, below the UK’s projected GDP of $4.26 trillion.
Explanation:
The IMF ranks countries as per their GDP in dollar terms. It means that GDP in local currency must be adjusted based on current exchange rates with the US dollar.
In the context of India, the Rupee has depreciated from 84.6 per US dollar in 2024 to 88.5 per dollar in 2025, with the forecast of further depreciation in the coming years.
Thus, exchange rate fluctuations have affected the rankings as the Rupee has been under pressure recently.
The Rupee has lately traded in the range of Rs 94–95 per dollar and stabilised at Rs 93.39 due to high global oil prices and stronger demand for dollars amid the geopolitical crisis in West Asia.
At the same time, the British pound sterling has remained relatively stable, helping the UK maintain its position in GDP measured in dollars and pushing India behind.
Other factors include the outflow of foreign capital and rising hedging costs, which have also prompted intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to manage rupee volatility.
Has revision of GDP base affected India’s ranking?
In India, the revision in the GDP base year and methodology was carried out in February this year, which led to a downward adjustment in nominal output.
The base year was updated from 2011–12 to 2022–23, and the revised series shows a smaller economy than previously estimated.
Government data indicates that nominal GDP for FY26 declined from Rs 357 trillion in the old series to Rs 345.5 trillion in the new series.
IMF estimates also reflect this shift, with India’s GDP projections revised downward across years. (BVI)
