Japan has a highly developed mixed economy, often referred to as an East Asian model. According to the IMF forecast for 2025, it will be the fourth-largest economy in the world by nominal GDP and the fifth-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) by the end of the year. It constituted 3.7% of the world's economy on a nominal basis in 2024. According to the same forecast, the country's nominal per capita GDP (PPP) will be $56,440 (2025). Due to a volatile currency exchange rate, Japan's nominal GDP as measured in American dollars fluctuates sharply.
A founding member of the G7 and an early member of the OECD, Japan was the first country in Asia to achieve developed country status. In 2024, Japan was the sixth-largest in the world as an importer and eight-largest as an exporter. The country also has the world's fourth-largest consumer market. Japan used to run a considerable trade surplus, but the decline of the manufacturing sector since the 1980s and increased fossil fuel imports after the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011 have changed this trend in recent years. Being the world's largest creditor nation, Japan has a considerable net international investment surplus. The country has the world's second-largest foreign-exchange reserves, worth $1.4 trillion. Japan has the third-largest financial assets in the world, valued at $12 trillion, or 8.6% of the global GDP total as of 2020. Japan has a highly efficient and strong social security system, which comprises roughly 23.5% of GDP. The Tokyo Stock Exchange is the world's fourth-largest stock exchange by market capitalisation as of 2025.
