Taylor Swift has been named the biggest-selling artist of 2019.

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift

The 'You Need To Calm Down' hitmaker has beaten the likes of Ed Sheeran, Billie EIlish and Post Malone to claim the top spot, The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) announced this week.

The US pop superstar has also been named Global Recording Artist of the Year for the second time in the same year she released her LP 'Lover', having previously claimed the title in in 2014 when she dropped '1989'.

'Lover' shifted five million copies worldwide as of January, whilst hit single 'ME!' featuring Panic! At The Disco's Brendon Urie debuted at the top of the Spotify chart.

Frances Moore, chief executive of IFPI, commented: "Taylor Swift is the epitome of a truly global star,.

"She continues to grow as an artist and maintains an incredibly strong connection with her fanbase, whilst continuing to evolve her sound with each album.

"It is a pleasure to be able to present her with the Global Recording Artist of the Year award for the second time."

Taylor's pal Ed follows shortly behind in second position, having previously been named the biggest-selling artist of 2017.

Last year's star-studded 'No. 6 Collaborations Project', featuring the likes of Stormzy, Cardi B, Camila Cabello and Khalid, saw the flame-haired star top the charts in 19 countries.

Whilst lead single 'I Don't Care', with Justin Bieber, was number one in a total of 26 countries.

'Circles' hitmaker Post managed to jump up from fourth place, claiming the third spot on the IFPI's list.

His hit record 'Hollywood's Bleeding' was only released in September, and it had the second-biggest first week sales of 2019 and biggest in streams.

The album featured collaborations with DaBaby, Future, Halsey, Meek Mill, Lil Baby, Ozzy Osbourne, Travis Scott, SZA, Swae Lee, and Young Thug.

'bad guy' hitmaker Billie nabbed fourth position after a phenomenal year, which saw the 18-year-old star earn an impressive four Grammys for her record-breaking debut album, 'When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?'.

Rock legends Queen made it into the top five, whilst BTS, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande and The Beatles completed the top 10.