The comparator reviewed national accounts data of OECD countries to determine how they fared in the first year of the pandemic.
Of the 38 countries included in the research, just seven – Ireland, Turkey, Israel, Korea, New Zealand, Denmark, and Poland – recorded an increase in their gross domestic product (GDP) between 2019 and 2020.
Across all countries included in the research, the OECD total fell 3.1% from 2019 to 2020. In comparison, the figure stood at 3.4% in 2009 when the Global Financial Crisis hit.
According to the organization's data, Hungary's GDP fell by 2.78% in 2020.
With the biggest growth year-on-year by a considerable margin, Ireland’s 7.65% increase represents a monetary growth of USD 33.81 billion, which brought the total GDP to almost USD 476 bln. According to the country’s Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, this was primarily thanks to pharmaceutical and ICT (Information and Communications Technology) exports.
Rounding out the podium was Turkey with a 4.05% (USD 92.4 bln) gain, and Israel, which improved by 1.57%, bringing its GDP total to USD 385.7 bln. In Israel’s case, a highly successful vaccination program may have contributed to the nation staying afloat economically.
During the course of the pandemic in 2020, those who experienced the most negative impacts were Spain, Greece, Italy, Mexico, and the United Kingdom, according to Compare the Market's analysis.
Spain suffered an 8.71% decline, equivalent to a USD 173.15 bln drop. The OECD concluded that Spain’s tourism activity “dropped by an estimated 75% from April 2020 to March 2021, and some service activities were hit hard by contact restrictions.”
Greece recorded a sizeable 7.84% (USD 25.96 bln) contraction in 2020. Italy, one of the first European countries to be significantly impacted by the virus, rounded out the bottom three with a 6.99% decline.
The full list of OECD countries and their equivalent GDP activity from 2019 to 2020, is available on Compare the Market’s website.
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