3/13/2010
Top Outsourcing Locations by Economy Size
From a population perspective, India and China overshadow all other outsourcing locations. However, when you look at country size through an economic lens, the picture changes. This is not to imply that lower economic output implies an inferior outsourcing location. Depending on the country and your priorities, lower economic output might translate to a better fit.
To provide context we have included the United States in Figure 1 below. The US economy, at about $13 trillion, eclipses all the major offshore locations. China ranks first among it’s peers at over $3 trillion and continues to grow rapidly. India, considered by many as the top outsourcing location. ranks fifth at just over $1 trillion.
Top Offshore Outsourcing Locations by National Income - Figure
Locations in the Americas stack up well. After China, Canada and Brazil have the next largest economies with both over $1 trillion. Mexico and Argentina also rank in the top 10 with economies of $1 trillion and $240 billion respectively.
Russia and Poland are in the top 10 with economies of $1 trillion and $375 billion respectively. However, all other Eastern European countries fall outside of the top ten with economies below $200 billion.
At the bottom of the list are Vietnam, Bulgaria, Jordan, and Ghana which one would categorize as emerging outsourcing locations. The low economic output is due to both low relative populations and low output per capita. As noted above, low economic output does not imply they are inferior locations, but one should carefully consider future resource requirements prior to selecting one of these countries.