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The global economy is in a fairly frightening state right now. Finding good news is about as difficult as convincing kids that the raisins you gave them for trick-or-treating are as good as candy.

Illustration by Trent Troop

But a few corners of the world are seeing signs of life and will dramatically change the world in years to come, from import and export partnerships to an unprecedented rise in the world’s middle class population.

Gross domestic product (GDP) is the most commonly used indicator of a country's overall economic output, measured by the market value of all goods and services produced in a country. GDP can offer a snapshot of a country’s economic health at any given time.

Senior Lecturer of Management John Doggett shares some hair-raising GDP statistics to shed light on the changing world economy:

• As of April 2010, the economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China (collectively known as the BRICs) were 23.5 percent of global GDP. That is $2.2 trillion larger than America’s GDP.
• China is now the world’s second largest economy and India is the fourth largest. “The trade implications are obvious,” says Doggett.
• China, India and Brazil were the only countries in the top 10 GDPs to experience positive growth in 2009. The United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Russia, France and Italy saw declines in GDP.
• Goldman Sachs predicts that by 2050, China will be the largest economy in the world, with India and the United States tied for a distant second. How we react to this opportunity and our new competitors will affect the standard of living for future generations. “This is the greatest possible time to be alive and be a businessperson,” says Doggett.