Global market pecking order changes in 2018; here's how they stack up

Trade tensions, strengthening US dollar and rising bond yields have rattled most global markets this year. The weakness in equities has changed the pecking order of most-valuable nations in terms of market capitalisation. China and India have seen their ranking decline, while Japan, Canada and Germany have moved up the pecking order. China, whose market value has eroded by nearly $2 trillion, has ceded the second place to Japan. Its benchmark Shanghai Composite lost nearly 19 per cent this year. While India’s benchmark Sensex is up 11 per cent YTD, still its ranking has slipped to nine from eight during the start of the year. 

A sharp 11 per cent slide in the rupee against the dollar and underperformance of the boarder market have led to market cap erosion of $236 billion for India. The US, on the other hand, has added $2.4 trillion to market capitalisation this year. Besides the US, Canada and France are the only countries in the top 10  which have witnessed their market cap going up.