Brics+ vs G7 in charts: What ails the biggest global south bid to western dominance?

Mint

17 hours ago

The 17th annual Brics summit began on Sunday in Brazil against the backdrop of trade wars and actual wars, continuing the bloc's efforts to create a strong alternative to the G7 to highlight the interests of the 'global south' and emerging economies.
However, it started on a lacklustre note, with Chinese President Xi Jinping skipping it and Russian President Vladimir Putin joining virtually to avoid arrest warrants against him.
Nevertheless, the summit, which saw representatives from other countries, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, garnered the attention of US President Donald Trump, who threatened an additional 10% tariff on any country aligning with the 'anti-American policies of BRICS".
While the US president did not specify what he meant by 'anti-American policies", he has earlier warned about Brics's efforts to create an alternative currency or alternative trade payment system. The idea, first floated in 2015, found mention again this year, but meaningful progress has been a distant dream.Such a move, however, is in line with the bloc's aim of coordinating multilateral policies of the global south, which is deemed as an alternative to the G7, or Western countries, by several experts. Brics+, comprising 11 countries, represents 48% of the world population while G7 nations account for about 10%. Moreover, Brics+ is closing the gross domestic product (GDP) gap with the G7 nations rapidly, underlining the importance and the need for such a group.
Growing GDP
In 2024, G7 nations—the US, Germany, Japan, the UK, France, Canada, and Italy—dominated the GDP contribution to the world, with a 42% share. However, their share has declined from 49% in 2010.
Brics+, in 2024, accounted for 31% of the global GDP, buoyed by the expansion from Brics, which accounted for only 19% of the global GDP in 2010. Brics, which started with an informal grouping of Brazil, Russia, India and China, added South Africa in 2010. The group has expanded further since, with the addition of Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia (the final status of Saudi Arabia is unclear, but the country is listed on Brics 2025 website and has been considered for analysis by Mint).
The GDP contribution of both these blocs is highly skewed by the presence of the US in one case (G7) and China in the other (Brics+). The US accounts for 56% of G7's GDP (23% of the world), and China accounts for 62% of the Brics+ GDP (19% of the world).
Trade ties
India's position in Brics+ is marked by its status as the world's fastest-growing nation and as an emerging leader in the global south. Also, India is set to become the world's fourth-largest economy shortly. However, the dominance of China in the group puts India in an awkward position, as the two nations are often in competition with each other, with little or no common political ground.
While India has strong trade ties with Brics+, led by China, the UAE and Russia, the country's trade relations with G7 countries, especially the US, cannot be ignored. India also signed a landmark free trade agreement with the UK this year.
While Trump's trade policies and incessant tariff threats have caused India (and every country around the world) a great deal of uncertainty, recent trade policies by China restricting critical minerals and fertilizers have also caused disruptions in India. As such, India will have to walk a tightrope while representing the interests of Brics+ without isolating its partners in the G7.
Divided house
Even as Brics+ aims to create a unified bloc to represent the interests of the global south, its member countries have more differences than similarities. While G7 enjoys homogenous democratic values typical of Western liberal democracies, Brics+ ranges from democracy to authoritarian to dictatorial leadership.
Also, while all countries in the G7 have high scores on the Economist Intelligence Unit's Democracy index, only India and South Africa represent strong democratic values among Brics+ nations.
Moreover, Russia's war with Ukraine puts it at odds with countries like Brazil and South Africa, which are members of the International Criminal Court that has an arrest warrant against Putin over the war with Ukraine.
India, which enjoys a long-standing strategic partnership with Russia, often finds China undermining its interests, as seen during the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
As such, despite its growing influence, Brics+ often gets undermined by its divisions.