250 Years of the United States: Still a Superpower, but Not as Great as Before

 The United States (US) is entering a historic moment. On July 4, 2026, Uncle Sam's country will celebrate 250 years since its declaration of independence in 1776.

For nearly two and a half centuries, the US has grown from a new nation in the Americas to the world's greatest power. Its economy has become the largest, its military has spread across regions, its technology has transformed modern life, and its dollar has become the backbone of the global financial system.

But as the 250th anniversary approaches, a major question arises: Is the US still as dominant as it once was?

According to The Economist, several data points show that the US is indeed still very powerful. Economically, militarily, and technologically, the country is richer, stronger, and more advanced than ever before. However, in relative terms, its position is no longer as far behind other countries as it once was.

The debate about US power is often characterized by exaggerated language. In his first inaugural address in 2017, Donald Trump painted a very gloomy picture of the US's condition.  Meanwhile, in his second inaugural address in 2025, Trump declared that the US would reclaim its position as the world's largest, most powerful, and most respected nation.

Interestingly, Americans themselves are also becoming pessimistic about their country's position on the global stage. Six in ten Americans now predict that by 2050, their country will be less important in the world than it is today.

Therefore, the question is not simply whether the US is weakening. The more important question is what exactly US power looks like today.

The Economist attempted to answer this question with a data-driven approach. The results showed that the US remains very powerful. However, US dominance, by many measures, is no longer as strong as it once was.

The US's journey to becoming a world power is most easily seen in its economic rise.

In 1820, the US was still a small country with a population of around 10 million. This number included European settlers, slaves, and Native Americans.

The US was also not as large as it is today. Its territory was less than half the size of the US today. Economically, its economy was only about one-tenth the size of the British Empire.

At the same time, China under the Qing Dynasty was still a world economic giant, controlling about a quarter of global economic output.

Britain's power then soared through war, colonization, and the industrial revolution. Around 1840, during the First Opium War between Britain and China, the British Empire overtook China as the world's largest economy.

However, the US also began to catch up quickly. One important factor was cotton production. The invention of the cotton gin in 1793, coupled with the brutal use of slave labor, made the US a major global cotton producer by the 1850s.

At the same time, the US continued to expand westward. This expansion was often carried out through violent means. However, economically, it gave the US access to vast natural resources.

Vast forests provided timber for faster development. Strategic ports and the Mississippi River became vital routes for trade and export.

Coal mines in Pennsylvania, Appalachia, and the Midwest powered railways and factories. Meanwhile, iron ore deposits in the Great Lakes region provided the primary raw material for the steel industry.

The Civil War ravaged much of the US, but it did not completely destroy the country. The war ended in 1865, bringing the end of slavery.

Afterward, US industrialization proceeded rapidly. In 1891, the US officially overtook Britain in energy consumption.

By 1899, following the Spanish-American War and the Treaty of Paris, which gave the US control of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines, the US was estimated to have more arable land than almost any other country. At that time, the US was second only to the Russian Empire.

A few years later, in 1903, the US had become the world's largest economy.

 US dominance grew stronger as Europe was depleted by war. In 1945, when many major nations were devastated by World War II, the US economy reached its peak.

Unlike many other major powers, the US was largely untouched by the war. At the time, the US had only about 6% of the world's population. Yet, it controlled about one-third of global economic output.

After the war, the US economy continued to boom. Industrial strength, substantial public consumption, and government investment were key drivers. The US government also invested in national laboratories, highways, and other critical infrastructure.

The US also benefited from oil. After its discovery in Pennsylvania in the mid-19th century, oil began flowing abundantly from Texas wells in the 20th century.

Other factors contributed to the US economic growth, including immigration, legal certainty, substantial capital, and an entrepreneurial spirit.

From 1945 to 1999, the US economy grew more nominally than any other country. US researchers also created many of the foundations of modern life, including the transistor, the computer chip, the personal computer, and the internet.

So, why do so many people talk about US decline?

The key lies in the distinction between strength and dominance. The US is indeed stronger than ever. However, by some economic measures, it is no longer as dominant as it once was.

One example is the dollar. The US dollar's share of global foreign exchange reserves has been declining for decades and stood at 57% last year.

More importantly, the US-led world order has actually helped many other countries move up the ladder. On one hand, this can be seen as a success. But on the other, it can be seen as a cause of diminishing US dominance.

Since 1945, the world economy has grown 19-fold. The average income of people worldwide has increased about fivefold.

The rise of China, especially after joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, has been one of the things that has most infuriated Trump.

About a decade ago, China was the world's largest economy when measured by purchasing power.

By two measures that Trump often focuses on, manufacturing output and exports of goods, the US has actually continued to grow in absolute terms. However, in terms of global share, the US lags behind.

In 1945, the US produced about half the world's manufactured goods. By 2024, its share had dropped to around 15%.

Meanwhile, China's share of global manufacturing had more than doubled.

In fact, the US exports twice as many services as China. Yet Trump has often highlighted the relative low level of US goods exports.

On the other hand, there is also the view that the post-war world order has not delivered commensurate results for ordinary Americans.

The wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and more recently Iran have demonstrated that substantial military power does not always guarantee success.

No matter how many US aircraft carriers there are, they cannot automatically prevent Iran from disrupting oil flows in the Strait of Hormuz. Nor can military power directly stop China from restricting access to rare earth metals.

A 2024 survey showed that nearly six in ten Americans believe their country loses more than it gains from trade with other countries.

Trump once stated that the wealth of the American middle class has been taken from their homes and spread around the world. This view is related to what is often referred to as the China shock.

Research by David Autor, David Dorn, and Gordon Hanson shows that the China shock resulted in the loss of up to 2.4 million jobs between 1999 and 2011.

However, while painful for affected workers, these job losses did not destabilize the US labor market as a whole.

At the end of 2011, the US labor market was still experiencing a regular turnover of around 4 million jobs each month.

In general, the postwar world order continues to foster US prosperity. Since 1960, real incomes in the US have risen more in absolute terms than in any other major country or region.

The increase in real incomes in the US was more than five times that of India and twice that of China.

Among countries with populations exceeding 20 million, the US remains the richest. Its income is almost 20% higher than that of second-place Australia.

 Median family income in the US has also more than doubled in real terms since 1960.

However, inequality in the US is significant and above the average for wealthy countries. This is largely related to rising returns to wealth and the US tax structure.