The US state of California says it has officially overtaken Japan to become the world's fourth-largest economy, in terms of nominal GDP for 2024.



California Governor Gavin Newsom made the announcement on Wednesday, based on newly released data from the International Monetary Fund, and the US Bureau of Economic Analysis. The BEA is part of the US Department of Commerce.



According to the IMF's 2024 World Economic Outlook data and the state-level GDP data from the BEA, California's nominal GDP reached 4.1 trillion dollars, surpassing Japan's GDP of 4.02 trillion dollars.



These figures place California behind only the United States, China, and Germany in global rankings.
A recent fall in the value of the yen against the dollar has cut into Japan's GDP in dollar terms.



California has a large concentration of high-tech firms, and is also the country's leading agriculture producer.



Governor Newsom said, "Our economy is thriving because we invest in people, prioritize sustainability, and believe in the power of innovation."



He went on to say, "While we celebrate this success, we recognize that our progress is threatened by the reckless tariff policies of the current federal administration."