The mobile industry contributes nearly $4 trillion to the global economy. It's more important than ever

Sep 17, 2019

With the collaboration of Statista.

Men are silhouetted against a video screen as they pose with Samsung Galaxy S3, Nokia Lumia 820 and iPhone 4 smartphones (L-R) in this photo illustration taken in the central Bosnian town of Zenica, May 17, 2013.

Image: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Martin Armstrong

Data Journalist, Statista

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The mobile revolution has completely changed our lives, and as data from GSMA shows, it has had the same effect on the global economy. Last year, 4.6 percent of global GDP came from the mobile industry - equating to $3.9 trillion. The APAC region contributed the most to this total, with $1.6 trillion generated. In terms of regional dominance though, mobile is the most important to the economy in West Africa, accounting for 8.7 percent of total GDP. The situation is very similar in Sub-Saharan Africa, too, where the proportion is 8.6 percent.

Looking back over previous years, it is also clear how this importance is increasing around the globe. In 2014, the global economy had the mobile industry to thank for 3.8 percent of GDP. In 2022, GSMA forecasts this to have reached 4.8 percent.

Image: Statista

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