# Hands & Demands: the Producer–Consumer Index, by country — Runner > Hands & Demands is the Producer–Consumer Index: how many producers each economy has for every 100 consumers. South Korea: 51 in 2026, 41 by 2050. 185 countries, read every month. Canonical: https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index The Producer–Consumer Index counts the producers each economy has for every 100 consumers: the hands, and the demands on them. In the United States, South Korea, Japan and the European Union, the count has passed its peak. ## Producers for every 100 consumers | Economy | 2026 | 2050 | Change | Page | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | United States | 50.9 | 48.7 | −4.4% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/united-states | | South Korea | 51.4 | 41.3 | −19.6% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/south-korea | | Japan | 42.7 | 36.8 | −13.8% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/japan | | European Union | 46.8 | 40.7 | −13.1% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/european-union | | Germany | 45.1 | 40.2 | −11.0% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/germany | | France | 42.8 | 39.6 | −7.5% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/france | | United Kingdom | 48.3 | 45.2 | −6.5% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/united-kingdom | | Italy | 48.9 | 40.5 | −17.2% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/italy | | Spain | 53.2 | 43.1 | −19.0% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/spain | | Canada | 48.2 | 45.3 | −6.1% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/canada | | Australia | 54.1 | 50.5 | −6.7% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/australia | | China | 47.3 | 40.1 | −15.2% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/china | | India | 63.0 | 67.3 | +6.7% | https://www.runtheworld.ai/producer-consumer-index/india | ## November 2026: who is at work Workers per 100 people: everyone with a job, over everyone who lives there. Read from each country's own labour survey. Of the 11 economies here, South Korea has the most people at work: 56.2 for every 100 who live there. Spain moved most in a year: +0.7. | Economy | Period | Workers per 100 people | In a year | People per worker | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | United States | Oct 2026 | 47.6 | −0.2 from Sep 2025 | 2.10 | | South Korea | Sep 2026 | 56.2 | +0.3 from Sep 2025 | 1.78 | | Japan | Sep 2026 | 56.1 | +0.5 from Sep 2025 | 1.78 | | European Union | Q2 2026 | 46.3 | +0.2 from Q2 2025 | 2.16 | | Germany | Q2 2026 | 50.7 | −0.2 from Q2 2025 | 1.97 | | France | Q2 2026 | 42.5 | −0.2 from Q2 2025 | 2.35 | | United Kingdom | Q2 2026 | 49.3 | 0.0 from Q2 2025 | 2.03 | | Italy | Q2 2026 | 41.3 | +0.4 from Q2 2025 | 2.42 | | Spain | Q2 2026 | 45.7 | +0.7 from Q2 2025 | 2.19 | | Canada | Oct 2026 | 50.7 | +0.1 from Oct 2025 | 1.97 | | Australia | Sep 2026 | 52.6 | −0.2 from Sep 2025 | 1.90 | ## Where the count is heading by 2050 Everyone who will be 25 or older in 2050 has already been born, so this part of the future is close to a head count. 99 of 185 countries have fewer producers per 100 consumers in 2050 than in 2026. ## How the index is counted - **Producers per 100 consumers.** The headline, known to economists as the support ratio. Everyone consumes, from a newborn to a pensioner; producers are the people earning from work. Each age counts for what it typically earns and what it typically consumes, measured against an adult aged 30 to 49. Those patterns are held steady, so every move in the line is the population itself changing. Years after 2021 are projections on the United Nations' population outlook. Source: [NTA Network, NTA Indicators, 2024 revision](https://www.ntaccounts.org/web/nta/show/Indicators). - **Workers per 100 people.** The monthly count. Employed people aged 15 and over, seasonally adjusted, over the whole population. Published every month for the United States, South Korea, Japan, Canada and Australia, and every quarter for the European Union, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain. Source: [OECD, labour force statistics and population](https://data-explorer.oecd.org/). - **Output per worker.** What a year of one person's work adds up to: GDP per person employed, in constant 2021 international dollars, so countries and years compare. Source: [World Bank, World Development Indicators](https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.GDP.PCAP.EM.KD). The index sets each economy's 2020 count to 100, so one number says how far it has moved. South Korea at 78 in 2050 has 22% fewer producers per consumer than in 2020. A producer here is anyone earning from work, the self-employed and family workers included. Care and housework at home are outside the count, as they are outside GDP. ## Questions about the index **What is the Producer–Consumer Index?** A monthly count of how many producers each economy has for every 100 consumers, with workers per 100 people and output per worker beside it. It covers 185 countries. **Why is it called Hands & Demands?** Hands are the producers: the people earning from work. Demands are the consumers, which is everyone. It is supply and demand, counted in people. **Is this the economic support ratio?** Yes. The headline is the support ratio from the National Transfer Accounts, the method set out in the United Nations' manual of that name. The index adds a monthly head count and output per worker, and sets 2020 to 100 so each economy's trend reads as one number. **How can a country have few producers per 100 consumers and many people at work?** The two counts weigh people differently. Workers per 100 people counts every job once. Producers per 100 consumers weighs each age by what it typically earns and consumes, so a country with many older workers and many older consumers scores high on one and low on the other. Japan shows both at once. **How often is it updated?** Every month. Employment is read from each country's labour survey as the OECD publishes it, monthly or quarterly. Producers per 100 consumers moves with the population, and is read again with each revision of its source. **Can I quote these figures?** Yes. Every figure comes from a public source named on this page: the NTA Network, the OECD and the World Bank. Link to this page when you quote the index.