EU sees strong export recovery in 2024, import resumes late in year

The chemicals and related products group registered the largest increase in the last decade, doubling the surplus observed in 2014 from €119.1 billion to €238.1 billion (~$257.8 billion). Other manufactured goods changed from a surplus of €35.3 billion in 2014 to a deficit of €11.2 billion in 2024, according to data on international trade in goods published recently by Eurostat.

The data indicates that in 2024, imports decreased by 3.4 per cent compared to 2023, following a substantial decrease in 2023 (-16.1 per cent) compared with 2022. However, exports increased slightly by 1.1 per cent in 2024, compared with 2023, after falling in 2023 (-0.5 per cent).

In the last 3 months of 2024 compared with the same months in 2023, imports increased every month. By contrast, between February 2023 and March 2024, compared with the same month a year earlier, imports decreased every month. In 2024 exports grew in 7 of the months, most notably in April and July. In 2023 exports increased in the first 3 months and in June but decreased in all other months, most notably in September.

In 2024, Germany maintained the largest share of the EU's extra-EU trade, contributing 27.4 per cent of the bloc’s exports to non-EU countries and 18.6 per cent of its imports. Italy (11.8 per cent), France (10.6 per cent), and the Netherlands (10.2 per cent) were the only other EU nations with double-digit export shares. For imports, the Netherlands (17.8 per cent), France (10.4 per cent), and Italy (9.9 per cent) followed Germany.

The United States remained the largest destination for goods exported from the EU in 2024 with a share of 20.6 per cent. The United Kingdom stood second with 13.2 per cent, followed by China with 8.3 per cent. China was the largest supplier of goods into the EU in 2024 with a share of 20.1 per cent. The United States (12.9 per cent) followed at some distance.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (SG)