According to International Monetary Fund figures, Qatar replaced Luxembourg as the world's richest country with the highest purchasing power parity based per capita GDP of USD 81,466.

The IMF economic data for 2010 said that Qatar's figure was almost double that of the United States, which ranked seventh at USD 46,860.

The IMF report said that GDP dollar estimates used in its ranking were derived from purchasing power parity calculations prepared by various organizations, including the World Bank. It also qualified the statistics, saying PPP figures were estimates rather than hard facts.

Comparisons of national wealth are also frequently made on the basis of nominal GDP, which does not reflect differences in the cost of living in different countries.

Consequently, the IMF and the World Bank tend to use the PPP index to compare national wealth or living standards of various countries.

The UK ranked 21st with an estimated USD 35,059 in per capita GDP on a PPP basis, and France was 23rd at USD 33,910. Japan came in 24th at USD 33,885 and South Korea was two notches behind with USD 29,997. China was ranked 94th at USD 7,544.

(Sourced from www.tradearabia.com)