Japan reported two consecutive quarters of GDP contraction in Q3 and Q4 2023, meeting the technical definition of a recession, pushing its economy to shrink in size. For 2023 as a whole, Japan's nominal GDP grew 5.7 to $4.2 trillion, while Germany's grew 6.3 to $4.46 trillion, surpassing Japan as the world's third-largest economy. The GDP contraction was a surprise that missed analyst forecasts of 1.4 growth and highlights Japan's economic struggles amid global headwinds. Japan has fallen from being the second-largest economy globally.