The Second World War's Eastern Front, the largest theater of war in history, was largely dominated by the conflict between Germany and the Soviet Union. The two countries had agreed upon an unexpected peace pact in 1939, with the joint invasion and partition of Poland, but this peace was broken in June 1941 when Germany invaded the Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa. Germany's economic and technological superiority, alongside its Blitzkrieg military strategy, allowed it to gain the upper hand in the early stages of the conflict. Within six months the Germans had pushed the frontlines back to Moscow, and almost 40 percent of the Soviet population now lived in occupied territory. German gains at the expense of the Soviets was reflected in the changing balance of their economies - Germany's GDP grew each year until 1944, whereas the Soviet GDP fell by one third between 1940 and 1942.
Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945
(ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1)
Characteristic
Ratio of Soviet to German GDP (where Germany=1)
1945
1.1
1944
0.8
1943
0.7
1942
0.7
1941
0.9
1940
1.1
1939
1
1938
1
Created with Highcharts 7.2.2Ratio of Soviet to German GDP (where Germany=1)11111.11.10.90.90.70.70.70.70.80.81.11.119381939194019411942194319441945
00.20.40.60.811.21.4
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University of Warwick. (January 1, 1998). Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945 (ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved March 14, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/
University of Warwick. "Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945 (ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1)." Chart. January 1, 1998. Statista. Accessed March 14, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/
University of Warwick. (1998). Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945 (ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: March 14, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/
University of Warwick. "Ratio of The Gross Domestic Product (Gdp) of The Soviet Union and Germany Each Year between 1938 and 1945 (Ratio of Ussr to German Gdp, Germany=1)." Statista, Statista Inc., 1 Jan 1998, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/
University of Warwick, Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945 (ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/ (last visited March 14, 2025)
Ratio of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Soviet Union and Germany each year between 1938 and 1945 (ratio of USSR to German GDP, Germany=1) [Graph], University of Warwick, January 1, 1998. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1334940/wwii-gdp-ratio-ussr-germany/
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