25 years of the BRICS: the rebellion of the global south

The XVIII BRICS Summit, which is being held in New Delhi on 12 and 13 September, coincides with an anniversary of special significance. 25 years ago, the acronym BRIC appeared for the first time to identify Brazil, Russia, India and China as large emerging economies. What was then an economic forecast formulated by Western financial circles has become one of the most relevant geopolitical transformations of the beginning of the twenty-first century. The BRICS+, with eleven full members and a growing relationship with partner countries, today represent about half of the world’s population, while the G7 countries do not reach 10%; around 40% of world GDP measured in purchasing power parity, with the G7 below 30% and approximately a quarter of international trade. These figures show that the planet’s economic and demographic centre of gravity is no longer in the West.

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