India, in Infographics: Economy
China Grew Over 10% In 12 Of The Last 40 Years, India Once; India Has Grown Faster For Five Years Running
Real GDP Growth, China (1986 To 2025) And India (FY87 To FY26). China’s Economy Multiplied 27.3 Times, India’s 12.2 Times; India Has Grown Faster In Every Year Since FY22.
Hover Any Year For Both Growth Rates, Each Economy’s Size In US Dollars, The Base And Measure Behind India’s Figure, And China’s Property Phase. India’s Fiscal Year (April To March) Is Paired With China’s Calendar Year.
Years China Grew Over 10%
12
1987 To 2010; India: One, FY89 (10.6%)
Years India Grew Faster
9 Of 40
Including FY22 To FY26, Five In A Row
China’s Fastest Year
14.3%
1992; Also 14.2% In 2007
Latest Year
7.7% Vs 5.0%
India FY26 Vs China 2025
The Bottom Line
China’s Lead Was Built In Years Of Growth Above 10%: Twelve Of Them Between 1987 And 2010, Half Before Its Property Boom And Half During It. As Property Investment Slowed And Then Fell, So Did China’s Growth, To 4.6% A Year Since 2022. India Crossed 10% Once, But Has Grown Faster Than China In Each Of The Last Five Years.
What The Data Shows
China’s Growth Fell In Steps With Its Property Market
China Averaged 9.5% A Year In Its Property Boom (1998 To 2014, When Real Estate Investment Grew Over 10% Every Year), 6.3% In The Plateau (2015 To 2021) And 4.6% In The Slump (2022 To 2025, When Investment Fell Four Years Running). It Has Not Grown Over 10% Since 2010. Half Of Its 12 Years Over 10% Came Before The Boom, From 1987 To 1995.
India Grew Faster Each Decade Until Covid
India’s Decade Averages Rose From 5.8% To 6.5% To 7.7% (FY07 To FY16), Then Fell To 5.8% In FY17 To FY26, A Decade That Includes The Covid Contraction Of -5.8% In FY21. India Crossed 10% Only Once, In FY89 (10.6%).
India Has Grown Faster Every Year Since FY22
India Grew Faster Than China In 9 Of The 40 Years: FY90 And FY91, When China Slowed After Tiananmen; FY16 And FY17; And FY22 To FY26, Five In A Row. China Grew Faster Every Year From 2000 To 2014, India’s FY01 To FY15, A 15-Year Run.
The Size Gap Was Built Over Three Decades
Since 1986, China’s Real GDP Has Grown 27.3 Times And India’s 12.2 Times, Each In Its Own Currency. Most Of That Gap Opened Between The Early 1990s And 2014. In The Last Ten Years The Growth Rates Have Converged: India 5.8%, China 5.6%.
India’s Disputed Years
FY89 (1988-89)
10.6% On The 1980-81 Base (Computed From Published Levels); 10.5% In The 1993-94 Base Back Series. Over 10% On Both.
FY07 (2006-07)
9.6% On The 2004-05 Base; 8.1% In The Official 2011-12 Base Back Series (MoSPI And NITI Aayog, 2018); 10.08% In The National Statistical Commission Committee’s Back Series, Which Was Not Adopted.
FY11 (2010-11)
8.9% On The 2004-05 Base (Revised Down From 9.3%); 8.5% In The Official 2011-12 Base Back Series.
FY24 (2023-24)
7.2% On The New 2022-23 Base; 9.2% On The Old 2011-12 Base (MoSPI, May 2025).
Sources & Method
India
Real GDP Growth As Published By MoSPI (Earlier CSO) In The Base Of Its Time, Using The Final Estimate In That Base: 1980-81 Base (FY87 To FY94), 1993-94 (FY95 To FY00), 1999-2000 (FY01 To FY05), 2004-05 (FY06 To FY12), 2011-12 (FY13 To FY23), 2022-23 (FY24 To FY26). GDP At Factor Cost Until FY12, At Market Prices From FY13. Sources: Economic Surveys 1997-98, 1999-2000, 2004-05, 2008-09 And 2013-14; MoSPI Press Notes 2019 To June 2026; RBI Handbook. FY87 To FY93 Are Computed From Published Constant-Price Levels. Growth Across A Base Change Is Not Strictly Comparable.
China
National Bureau Of Statistics Real GDP Growth, As Revised After Each Economic Census, Via World Bank World Development Indicators (Updated 8 Oct 2026). NBS Publishes 1996 As 10.0%, So It Is Not Counted As Over 10%. Questions About The Reliability Of China’s Official Growth Data Are Long-Standing; This Chart Uses The Official Series As Published.
Property Phases And Compounding
Property Phases From NBS Real Estate Development Investment Growth: Over 10% Every Year From 1998 (Housing Reform) To 2014; 1% To 10% From 2015 To 2021; Falling From 2022. Economy Size In The Hover Box: Nominal GDP In Current US Dollars At Market Exchange Rates, World Bank (India By Fiscal Year); It Moves With Exchange Rates And Prices, Not Only Real Growth. ‘Times Bigger’ Chains Each Year’s Official Real Growth From 1986 In Each Country’s Own Currency; It Does Not Compare Sizes.
India’s Long-Run Growth Has No Single Official Series: Each Rebasing Covers Only Its Own Years, And Back Series Have Been Contested. A World Bank Linked Series Gives Lower Mid-2000s Figures (About 8%) And Puts FY89 At 9.6%. Data: Economic Survey Archive, MoSPI, World Bank (China), NBS.
