Changes in the GDP of the European Union and China from 1993 to 2024.

In 1993, the European Union was officially established, with a GDP totaling $6.76 trillion, only slightly lower than the United States' $6.86 trillion, with a difference of only $120 billion.

These two massive economies jointly dominated the global economy, accounting for over 50% of the world's total.

In contrast to these two economic powerhouses, China, as the largest developing country, had a GDP of only $444.7 billion, just one-fifteenth of the European Union's.

At that time, the European Union had become a key hub of the world economy, leading significantly in economic strength globally.

What was astonishing was that even five member states of the European Union individually had GDPs exceeding China's total.

Among them, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, the mainstays of the EU's economic development, had GDPs far exceeding China's, reaching $1.8 trillion, $1.3 trillion, and $1 trillion, respectively.

Even the weakest economy in the EU, Spain, had a GDP of $511.3 billion, far surpassing China's.

However, China's economic strength was relatively backward in the early stages of reform and opening up.

Although some progress was made in the early stages of reform and opening up, there was still a huge gap compared to developed countries.

It wasn't until 1992 that China established the goal of building a socialist market economy and embarked on comprehensive reform, truly ushering in a new era of development.

Opportunities often arise from disparities. On December 11, 2001, China officially became a member of the World Trade Organization, marking a significant milestone in China's economic development history.

Joining the WTO opened China's doors to the world in areas such as trade in goods, services, and intellectual property rights protection.

China swiftly leveraged its manufacturing advantages and intensified its opening-up efforts, with export trade becoming a new engine of economic growth, steadily increasing China's share of global GDP.

China gradually established its status as the "world's factory," with a large influx of foreign capital and advanced technology injecting continuous momentum into China's industrialization process.

At the beginning of the 21st century, China's economy rose at an astonishing speed.

Driven by sustained high-speed growth, the economic gap between China and the EU narrowed year by year, with China being hailed as the "engine of world economic growth."

In 2005, China's GDP surpassed that of France, in 2006 it surpassed the UK, and in 2007 it even surpassed Germany, becoming the world's third-largest economy.

In 2010, China's GDP surpassed Japan for the first time, becoming the largest economy in Asia.

China's economic rise has attracted global attention, and its influence on the world stage has been growing day by day.

By 2023, China's GDP had reached $17.9 trillion.

In comparison, although the EU's nominal GDP had expanded to $18.34 trillion, its actual GDP was only $14.11 trillion, $3.79 trillion less than China's.

In a short period of time, China soared from a developing country to such an extent, fully demonstrating the tremendous driving force brought by reform and opening up.

In stark contrast to the rapid growth of the Chinese economy, the EU economy has been stagnant or even in recession since 2008, with the economic growth forecast for 2024 also downgraded to 1.3%.

The main reasons for this are the series of external shocks and internal conflicts suffered.

Firstly, the international financial crisis of 2008 dealt a heavy blow to the EU economy. The lingering shadow of the financial crisis has become one of the roots of the EU's economic stagnation.

In addition, various internal factors within the EU cannot be ignored, such as the burden brought by the high welfare system, aging populations, and differences in interests among member states.

Due to factors such as the high welfare system and internal interest conflicts, the EU's internal driving force for development is gradually drying up.

If the EU cannot carry out fundamental institutional reforms, it may be difficult to recreate the myth of economic takeoff in the future.