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Indicators of economy in Belgium

The essential economic performance of a country is reflected by the gross domestic product, the total of all goods and services sold. Worldwide gross domestic product in 2021 was at about 12,230 USD per capita. GDP in Belgium, on the other hand, reached USD 51,247 per capita, or 594.10 billion USD for the whole country. Belgium is therefore currently ranked 23 of the major economies. If this is calculated per inhabitant, taking purchasing power parity into account, then Belgium ranks 19th in the list of the richest countries.

Inflation in Belgium in 2021 was around 2.44%. Within the EU, the average in the same year was 2.55 percent. In the United States, it was most recently 4.70%.

Compared with the USA, prices for daily consumer goods are around 3.0 percent lower.
The index for perceived corruption in the public sector is 73, which is above average by global standards.


Back to overview: Belgium

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

Overall, the gross domestic product in Belgium in 2020 decreased moderatly from 535.83 billion US dollars to 525.21 billion US dollars. Certainly, there have been shifts in some sectors of the economy, but a drop of 2.0 percent is still comparatively good this year. Numerous countries suffered more substantial losses. The tourism sector alone slumped by around 30 percent. The unemployment rate rose from 5.4 to 5.6 percent. The country's gross debt increased by 12.5 percent. The inflation rate fell from 1.4 percent previously to 0.7 percent by the end of 2020.

Unemployment rates in percentages 1991 - 2021

Economic performance 2021

 Belgium
Total		Belgium
per capita		EU
Total		EU
per capita
GDP594.10 bn USD51,247.01 USD17.177 tn USD33,384.92 USD
Gross national product585.38 bn USD50,494.08 USD16.895 tn USD32,835.37 USD


Belgium ranked 14th in the Bloomberg Innovation Index in 2021. The index is calculated annually and most recently included 60 countries. The front-runner was South Korea. Out of the 2,000 largest listed companies in the world, 7 originate from Belgium. This is determined annually in the Forbes Global 2000 list. The 7 largest companies in the country in 2022 were:

Rank 93: Anheuser-Busch InBev (Leuven)
Rank 307: KBC Group (Brussels)
Rank 715: Ageas (Brussels)
Rank 969: Solvay (Brussels)
Rank 1065: UCB (Brussels)
Rank 1198: Umicore (Brussels)
Rank 1329: Sofina (Brussels)

Development of gross domestic product in billions of USD 1960 - 2021


Household debt and deficits 2021


 Belgium
Total		Belgium
per capita		EU
Total		EU
per capita
Gross debt648.95 bn USD55,978.04 USD15.068 tn USD29,285.70 USD
Budget deficit33.08 bn USD2,853.04 USD799.24 bn USD1,553.35 USD

› Debt budget development
› Development of inflation
› Corruption in Belgium
› Cost of living in a global comparison

Imports and Exports 2021

 Belgium
Total		Belgium
per capita		EU
Total		EU
per capita
Imports512.92 bn USD44,244.50 USD8.916 tn USD17,329.02 USD
Exports513.53 bn USD44,296.67 USD9.554 tn USD18,569.19 USD


Development of imports and exports in billions of USD 2002 - 2021

Exports
Imports



Belgium: AirportsLargest airports and airlines in BelgiumThe 5 biggest airports and 3 airlines in Belgium with further information and data with further information on airlines and destinations
Belgium: Public HolidaysPublic holidays in Belgium 2023-2027Statutory and inofficial holidays in Belgium for 2023 to 2027
Pariah StatesList of the 11 current Pariah States11 countries, that suffer from the sanctions of the international community because of their mostly autocratic government.