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By Micah McCartney
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Taiwan has edged past economic powerhouse South Korea this year by one economic metric, per capita income, on the back of strong international demand for advanced semiconductors, according to the International Monetary Fund.
Newsweek lists the reshuffled rankings of East and Southeast Asia's economies, based on a forecast from the United Nations special agency.
Why It Matters
Per capita income, or gross domestic product divided by total population, is commonly used by economists as an “apples‑to‑apples” comparison of average wealth levels between countries. A higher per capita income generally suggests greater access to goods and services and a higher quality of life.
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While more meaningful than comparing raw national income across countries with vastly different population sizes, this has its drawbacks and should not be taken as definitive. The measure can mask deep income inequalities and does not inherently adjust for inflation or local cost of living.
Newsweek reached out to the IMF by email with a request for comment.
1. Singapore
The city‑state and financial hub is the runaway leader in per capita income terms, with a figure of $94,480, placing it behind only four wealthy nations globally—Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Iceland.
2. Macau
3. Hong Kong SAR
China’s two special administrative regions, gambling hub Macau and financial center Hong Kong, ranked second and third with $74,920 and $56,840, respectively.
4. Taiwan
The International Monetary Fund estimates gross domestic product (GDP) per capita for the “Silicon Island” reached $37,827 in 2025, supported by sustained economic growth.
Yeh Chun‑hsien, head of Taiwan’s National Development Council, has attributed the rise to the runaway success of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, and booming demand from chip‑thirsty industries such as artificial intelligence.
5. South Korea
6. Japan
This means Taiwan has pulled ahead of South Korea ($35,960) for the first time in 23 years. Taiwan’s per capita GDP also remains above Japan’s ($34,720), after passing Asia’s second‑largest economy on this metric for the first time last year, according to Asia Sentinel.
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7. Brunei
Tiny Brunei's higher position on the list is driven by its oil and natural gas revenues coupled with a population of just 466,000.
8. Malaysia ($13,900)
9. China ($13,810)
10. Thailand ($7,940)
11. Mongolia ($7,010)
12. Indonesia ($5,070)
13. Vietnam ($4,740)
14. The Philippines ($4,320)
15. Cambodia ($2,810)
16. Laos ($2,170)
17. Timor‑Leste ($1,510)
18. Myanmar ($1,100)
19. North Korea (No Data)
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