Cars were the most valuable type of commodity exported from the United Kingdom in 2024, with exports of this commodity valued at approximately 32.9 billion British pounds. Mechanical power generators were the second-most valuable commodity in 2024, with an export value of around 32.7 billion pounds in this year. By comparison, the most valuable import commodity was also cars, amounting to over 38.4 billion British pounds. The next most valuable import commodity was medicinal and pharmaceutical products at over 27.2 million pounds in this year. UK main trading partners Although the share of both imports and exports from the European Union has been declining recently, the single market is still by far the UK's main trading partner. In terms of individual countries, the United States was the main export partner in 2024 at 16.1 percent of all exports, while Germany was the UK's main import partner with 12.5 percent of imports coming from there in 2024. A main argument of the Leave vote, was that the UK should seek to improve up its trade with the rest of the world, outside of Europe. The success of this 'Global Britain' strategy, depends on the UK significantly scaling up its trade with other continents, with countries outside of Europe still responsible for far less trade than European ones. Brexit and EU trade At the start of 2021, the United Kingdom exited both the European Single Market and the European Customs Union, with the UK's trading relationship with the EU now determined by a new Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). Although the TCA continued tariff and quota-free goods trade between the EU and UK, a number of customs checks came into force, increasing trade friction between the two parties. The status of Northern Ireland in the initial agreement was also different from the rest of the UK. Goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain were initially subject to customs checks, to prevent customs checks occurring at the border with the Republic of Ireland. In February 2023, it was announced that under a new EU-UK agreement called the Windsor Framework, some goods entering Northern Ireland from Britain will be subject to fewer checks.

Exports in the United Kingdom decreased to 69835 GBP Million in May from 70472 GBP Million in April of 2024. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Exports - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The United States was the leading country for exports from the United Kingdom in 2024, with 16.1 percent of all UK exports going to this market. Germany was the second-largest export market for the UK in this year, followed by the Netherlands, with these countries accounting for 8.8 and 7.7 percent of UK exports respectively. During this year, cars were the most valuable goods commodity exported from the UK, while general business services were the most valuable type of service exported from the UK. UK imports most from Germany Although the United States was the largest export market, Germany was the country from which the UK imported the highest share of goods, with 12.5 percent of the UK’s imports coming from the country in 2024. The United States was the second-largest source of imports for the UK, with ten percent originating from there in 2024, with China a close third at 9.8 percent of UK imports. The main types of trade goods imported from the rest of the world in the UK included cars, oil, and mechanical power generators. The Balance of Trade In the fourth quarter of 2024, the United Kingdom had an overall trade deficit of over 11.5 billion pounds. Although service exports from the UK to the rest of the world amounted to more than 119.9 billion pounds, the UK imported far more goods than it exported, resulting in a goods trade deficit of 55.4 billion pounds, bringing down the overall trade balance. As of 2023, the UK was behind only the U.S. when it came to the overall size of the trade deficit.

Graph and download economic data for Trade Prices: Export Prices in the United Kingdom (TVEXPPUKA) from 1772 to 2016 about academic data, exports, United Kingdom, trade, and price.

This record is for Approval for Access product AfA330. International Waste Shipments Records of International shipments permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. Shipments into or out of the UK qualify as International Waste Shipments. They are registered to the country where the producer or receiver is registered, regardless of the exit or entrance point from/to the UK. The Environment Agency holds details of producers and receivers registered in England. This dataset initially covers Refuse Derived Fuel, with other waste types being added over time. Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) is waste typically from the mechanical treatment of waste (for example sorting, crushing, compacting, pelletising, etc). RDF consists largely of combustible components of both municipal and commercial industrial waste, such as plastics and biodegradable waste. Shipments are recorded in four groups; Waste leaving the UK, Waste arriving in another country from the UK, Waste leaving another country destined for the UK, and Waste arriving in the UK from another country. • Waste exported from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste received from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste imported from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste received in England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. Permit holders give indicative figures for how much waste they wish to have approved for import/export. They are not forecasts or projections. • Indicative amounts of waste anticipated for export, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. These are broad approvals. They give an inaccurate overestimate of actual exports. • Indicative amounts of waste anticipated for import, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. These are broad approvals. They give an inaccurate overestimate of actual imports. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2015. All rights reserved.

Records of International shipments permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. Shipments into or out of the UK qualify as International Waste Shipments. They are registered to the country where the producer or receiver is registered, regardless of the exit or entrance point from/to the UK. The Environment Agency holds details of producers and receivers registered in England. This dataset initially covers Refuse Derived Fuel, with other waste types being added over time. Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) is waste typically from the mechanical treatment of waste (for example sorting, crushing, compacting, pelletising, etc). RDF consists largely of combustible components of both municipal and commercial industrial waste, such as plastics and biodegradable waste. Shipments are recorded in four groups; Waste leaving the UK, Waste arriving in another country from the UK, Waste leaving another country destined for the UK, and Waste arriving in the UK from another country. • Waste exported from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste received from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste imported from England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. • Waste received in England, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. Permit holders give indicative figures for how much waste they wish to have approved for import/export. They are not forecasts or projections. • Indicative amounts of waste anticipated for export, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. These are broad approvals. They give an inaccurate overestimate of actual exports. • Indicative amounts of waste anticipated for import, permitted under the Transfrontier Shipment of Waste Regulations 2007. These are broad approvals. They give an inaccurate overestimate of actual imports.

In the year 2022, the value of trade goods exported from the United Kingdom to the United States was around 62.4 billion U.S. dollars, a slight increase from the previous year's value of 59.9 billion U.S. dollars.

In 2021, the main goods commodity the United Kingdom (UK) exported to European Union (EU) countries was machinery and transport equipment, including vehicles, cars, railway vehicles, and aircrafts among others. The UK imported more machinery and transport equipment from the EU than it exported to the EU in the same year, resulting in a trade deficit in this category.

Monthly export country-by-commodity data on the UK's trade in goods, including trade by all countries and selected commodities, non-seasonally adjusted.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the value of exports from the United Kingdom amounted to approximately 206.3 billion British pounds, while imports to the country amounted to around 217.8 billion pounds, resulting in a trade deficit of around 11.5 billion pounds in this quarter. During this time period, the value of UK exports was highest in the fourth quarter of 2022, with the value of imports peaking in the third quarter of 2022. The UK's main trade partners Despite the UK leaving the EU in 2020 following the Brexit referendum of 2016, Europe remains the main destination for UK exports, with almost half of UK exports heading there in 2023. During the same year, just over 60 percent of imports came from European countries, compared with around 17.9 percent from countries in Asia, and 11.8 percent from the Americas. In terms of individual countries, the United States was the UK's leading export partner for both goods and services from the UK, while Germany was the main source of UK goods imports, and the U.S. for service imports. It is as yet unclear how the return of Donald Trump to the White House will impact UK/US trade relations, should the President follow through with threats made on the campaign trail to increase trade tariffs. Brexit rethink under Starmer? Although generally more pro-European than the previous government, the new Labour government, led by Keir Starmer, does not plan to rejoin the European Union, or the Single Market. Public opinion, while gradually turning against Brexit recently, has not coalesced around a particular trading relationship. In late 2023, a survey indicated that while 31 percent of British adults wanted to rejoin the EU, a further 30 percent wanted to simply improve relations with the EU, instead of rejoining. Just 11 percent of respondents wanted to join the single market but not the EU, while 10 percent were happy with the relationship as it was. At the start of 2025, after several months in office, the new government has not signalled any major change in direction regarding on this, but has broadly signalled it wants a better relationship with the EU.

Subscribers can find out export and import data of 23 countries by HS code or product’s name. This demo is helpful for market analysis.

International trade is one of the most pressing topics on the UK’s Brexit checklist. With no definitive EU deal in immediate sight, it is not just the UK-EU trade that is at stake, but also the continuity of a number of trade agreements with third countries that take effect automatically with EU membership. It is fair to say that this uncertainty surrounding the UK’s international trade will not help the fluctuations experienced in the UK’s goods export as displayed in this statistic.

UK exports in and outside the EU

Since 2008, the UK ships more goods to non-EU countries than EU27. Nevertheless, even with its shrinking share in UK exports, the EU market accounts for the largest proportion of UK trade. This becomes more apparent when we look at the UK’s export trade partners as individual countries.

Trade balance swings

The UK is among the top exporting economies in the world, yet the country’s trade balance seems to be widening. In the first quarter of 2019, the UK’s trade deficit was the largest since 2016. This was down to increasing import activity, as export of trade goods still continued to improve over this period of time.

Exports of goods and services represent the value of all goods and other market services provided to the rest of the world. They include the value of merchandise, freight, insurance, transport, travel, royalties, license fees, and other services, such as communication, construction, financial, information, business, personal, and government services. They exclude compensation of employees and investment income (formerly called factor services) and transfer payments. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

Ireland Exports to United Kingdom was US$24.31 Billion during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade. Ireland Exports to United Kingdom - data, historical chart and statistics - was last updated on March of 2025.

This page displays a table with United Kingdom Exports By Category in U.S. dollars, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade.

Egypt Exports to United Kingdom was US$1.23 Billion during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade. Egypt Exports to United Kingdom - data, historical chart and statistics - was last updated on March of 2025.

This graph shows the growth in the U.S. export volume of trade goods to the United Kingdom from 1985 to 2023. In 2023, U.S. exports to the United Kingdom amounted to about 74.09 billion U.S. dollars.

United Kingdom UK: Export Volume Index data was reported at 89.757 2000=100 in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 97.985 2000=100 for 2015. United Kingdom UK: Export Volume Index data is updated yearly, averaging 91.268 2000=100 from Dec 2000 (Median) to 2016, with 17 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 103.526 2000=100 in 2006 and a record low of 75.483 2000=100 in 2009. United Kingdom UK: Export Volume Index data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Trade Index. Export volume indexes are derived from UNCTAD's volume index series and are the ratio of the export value indexes to the corresponding unit value indexes. Unit value indexes are based on data reported by countries that demonstrate consistency under UNCTAD quality controls, supplemented by UNCTAD’s estimates using the previous year’s trade values at the Standard International Trade Classification three-digit level as weights. To improve data coverage, especially for the latest periods, UNCTAD constructs a set of average prices indexes at the three-digit product classification of the Standard International Trade Classification revision 3 using UNCTAD’s Commodity Price Statistics, international and national sources, and UNCTAD secretariat estimates and calculates unit value indexes at the country level using the current year’s trade values as weights. For economies for which UNCTAD does not publish data, the export volume indexes (lines 72) in the IMF's International Financial Statistics are used.; ; United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Handbook of Statistics and data files, and International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics.; ;

United Kingdom Exports to Canada was US$6.82 Billion during 2024, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade. United Kingdom Exports to Canada - data, historical chart and statistics - was last updated on March of 2025.