In 2024, the global trade value of goods exported throughout the world amounted to approximately 24.4 trillion U.S. dollars at current prices. In comparison, this figure stood at around 6.45 trillion U.S. dollars in 2000. The rise in the value of goods exported around the world reflects developments in international trade, globalization, and advances in technology. Export trade Global trade refers to the exchange of capital, goods and services between different countries and territories. The export of trade goods refers to goods sold internationally which were grown, produced, or manufactured in another country. Who are the leading importers and exporters of trade goods? In 2021, China was the largest source of goods exported around the world, with total merchandise exports valuing approximately 3.37 trillion U.S. dollars. That year, China was responsible for almost 15 percent of all trade goods exported around the world. The United States was the second largest exporters of goods that year. The United States was the leading importer of merchandise in the world as of 2021. That year, the global superpower accounted for 13 percent of the world’s merchandise imports.

The United States recorded a trade deficit of 59.55 USD Billion in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Balance of Trade - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

In most years between 1900 and 1950, the United Kingdom received the largest value of exports from the United States, with large spikes during the world wars. France also saw a large increase in export value during the First World War, but received almost nothing in the early-1940s when it was under German occupation. Overall, there was a large decline in exports from the U.S. in the 1930s due to the impact of the Great Depression.

Exports in the United States increased to 280.83 USD Billion in August from 280.60 USD Billion in July of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Exports - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The statistic shows a ranking of the top 20 import countries worldwide in 2024. In 2024, the U.S. was the leading import country in the world with an import value of about **** trillion U.S. dollars. Import and export worldwide Import and export are generally important pillars of a country’s economy. The trade balance of a country shows the relationship between the values of a country’s imports and exports. If the balance is positive, i.e. if the value of exports is higher than that of imports, it is called a trade surplus. If it is negative and import values exceed export values, it represents a trade deficit. Worldwide trade is regulated by the World Trade Organization (WTO). It provides a framework for trade agreements and helps in resolving disputes. Since its foundation in 1995, more than 150 countries have become members of the WTO and obligated themselves to follow its regulations. The worldwide export volume in trade since 1950 has tripled, and a similar development can be observed in the worldwide import trade volume since 1950. Europe is leading the ranking regarding the value of worldwide export volume of trade by region, but the value of goods exported by Asia is almost up to par. Both continents are also the top destination regions of inter-regional trade worldwide. The United States, China, and Germany are the leading import countries worldwide, and also the leading export countries worldwide, albeit in a different order. The top traded goods and commodities are oil and fuel, electronic equipment, and machinery. The volume of commodities traded worldwide has increased dramatically over the past few years.

Throughout the early 20th century, Germany and Japan were both among the largest trading partners of the United States. Although the United States would declare war on Germany twice and on Japan once during this time, at which points trade would virtually cease, trade ties were fairly strong in the years without war. Values were highest in the *****, before global trade fell in the ***** due to the impact of the Great Depression. All three countries were severely hit by the Depression, however the decline in trade was compounded by rising tensions between the U.S. and the new far-right governments of both Germany and Japan. After the war, U.S. investment in both nations increased significantly, helping with their post-war recovery and giving the U.S. a strong level of influence over its former adversaries - West Germany and Japan would then emerge as the two largest economies in their respective regions during the post-World War II economic boom.

Imports in the United States decreased to 340.38 USD Billion in August from 358.76 USD Billion in July of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Imports - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This dataset contains country level economic and social measures for 183 countries. Part 1, World Tables (1980 File), contains, where available, measures of (1)population, (2)national accounts and price data for 1950, 1955, 1960 through 1977, (3)data on external trade for 1962, 1965, 1970, and 1977, (4)data on balance of payments, debt, central government finance and trade indices for 1970-1977, and (5)social data for 1960, 1970, and (estimated) 1977. More specifically, the groupings include population, GDP by industrial origin and expenditures in constant local prices and current local prices, exchange rates and indices, balance of payments and external debt ($US), central government finance in local currency, social indicators, and external trade. Part 2, World Tables (1982 File), contains data on national accounts, prices, exchange rates and population for 1960-1981. The groupings include GDP by industrial origin as well as expenditure in current local prices and constant local prices, area, population, exchange rates, and indices and savings.

During the 19th century, the United States generally had a negative trade balance, importing more than it exported, particularly from the British Empire. This changed at the turn of the 20th century, and the U.S. consistently had a positive trade balance between 1896 and 1970. The greatest periods of fluctuation came during the world wars, as well as an observable decline following the Wall Street Crash of 1929.

While inflation rates increased the total value of imports and exports over time, the rate of growth did increase significantly from 1900 onwards. The early 20th century saw the U.S. move away from its traditional isolationist policies (apart from a brief period during the great Depression) and emerge as a global superpower. Following the Second World War, the U.S. used its economic power to maintain its influence across the globe, as it sought to suppress the expansion of communism.

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25,933 DAYS (January 1st, 1950 to December 31st, 2020)

This is a dataset that tracks arms imports of various countries, regions and select groups worldwide from 1950 to 2020.

All data are official figures from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute that have been compiled and structured by myself. The arms imports data of selected groups such as anti-Castro rebels are also being tracked in order to increase the analytical potential of the dataset. Please note that a '0' indicates that the value of deliveries is less than 0.5m, and a null value indicates that the value of deliveries are too minimal to be counted. A weapon that has been in service in another armed force is given a value of 40% of that of a new weapon, while an used weapon that has been significantly refurbished or modified by the supplier before delivery is given a value of 66% of that of a new weapon.

Why did I create this dataset? The arms trade continues to be a significant issue in the world today and contributes to instability in third-world countries. By uploading time-series data regarding arms imports per country over the past seven decades, I hope that the community is able to determine the various statistical trends offered. In my personal opinion, achieving a quantitative yet objective viewpoint of a subject such as the arms trade is crucial to understanding the underlying issues that plague our world.

Data Sources

The primary data source used was the official website of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which publishes data pertaining to global conflicts. An independent international institute, the SIPRI pursues extensive research into armaments, arms control and disarmament worldwide. Considering the SIPRI's role as one of the most respected think tanks around the globe, no other institute is more equipped to provide insight into arms imports.

1. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's Arms Trade Importer/Exporter TIV Tables - The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has published arms imports and exports data since 1950. Only the imports data was used for the dataset as its implications are far more meaningful than exports, an area where first-world countries such as the USA would predictably dominate.
2. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's Sources and Methods - The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute released a detailed overview of their arms imports data, the methodology behind their data, and the proper definitions and terminologies for the variables tracked. The guide mainly provided essential contextual knowledge needed to create a meaningful dataset.

Statistics Being Tracked

• Country/Region/Group (Name)
• Year (Total arms imports, in millions, for each year from 1950 to 2020)

Dataset History

2023-03-03 - Dataset is created (26,725 days after temporal coverage start date).

GitHub Repository - The same data but on GitHub.

Code Starter

Link to Notebook

In 1950, the Netherlands' volume of exports was 171 percent the rate it had been in 1913 (i.e., it was 1.7 times larger), but this figure grew to be more than 1,600 percent by 1973, which was the largest change in Western Europe. 1913 was the year before the First World War, and 1950 marked the end of the recovery period after the Second World War for most countries in Western Europe. Across these years, the most considerable change in export volumes was in Scandinavian countries, a region that saw rapid economic development in this period and whose level of devastation from the wars was much lower than most of the other countries listed here. The emergence of the Scandinavian and Dutch shipping industries also contributed significantly to their export sectors. Declines in Austria and Germany The only countries listed who saw a decrease in export volumes between 1913 and 1950 were Austria and Germany, where exports fell by 68 and 65 percent, respectively. Of the countries listed, these were the only ones to have been defeated in the war. Not only were much of their resources invested into recovery, but these countries were obligated to pay reparations for their roles in the Second World War via industrial and mechanical exports, rather than financial payments, which is one contributing factor to their lower export volumes. Territorial differences between 1913 and 1950 also played a large part in this, as both countries lost a significant share of their natural resources and industry due to the wars. Increased integration Despite this, the United Kingdom eventually saw the lowest growth in export volumes between 1913 and 1973. This was due to the fact that the British Empire had been the largest exporter in the world going into the First World War, but had lost the majority of its territories by 1973. The UK was also reluctant to join the Economic Communities in later decades, and the lack of integration meant that trade between the UK and the mainland had additional tariffs and barriers that were not in place for member states. Unrestricted trade and cooperation between nations, particularly concerning high-quality, manufactured goods, became a defining aspect of Western European trade in the late 20th century. European imports from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania dropped from roughly one-third to 18 percent between 1938 and 1970, while exports to these regions also dropped by a very similar rate.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in India expanded 8.20 percent in the third quarter of 2025 over the same quarter of the previous year. This dataset provides - India GDP Annual Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for Openness at Current Prices for Ethiopia (OPENCPETA156NUPN) from 1950 to 2010 about Ethiopia, imports, trade, and exports.

Graph and download economic data for Purchasing Power Parity Converted Gross Domestic Income (adjusted for Terms of Trade changes) for Italy (RGDPTTITA625NUPN) from 1950 to 2010 about Italy, adjusted, PPP, trade, gross, domestic, and income.

Tansanias Ausfuhren: IKT-Waren belief sich im 2023 auf 8,205.791 USD th. Dies stellt einen Rückgang im Vergleich zu den vorherigen Zahlen von 8,750.499 USD th für 2022 dar. Tansanias Ausfuhren: IKT-Waren werden jährlich aktualisiert, mit einem Durchschnitt von 18.233 USD th von 2000 bis 2023, mit 24 Beobachtungen. Die Daten erreichten ein Allzeithoch in Höhe von 34.091 USD th im 2024 und ein Rekordtief in Höhe von 5.482 USD th im 1950. Tansanias Ausfuhren: IKT-Waren Daten behalten den Aktiv-Status in CEIC und werden von United Nations Conference on Trade and Development gemeldet. Die Daten werden unter World Trend Pluss Association: Electronic Sector – Table RF.UNCTAD.ICT: ICT Goods: Total: Export Value kategorisiert.

Singapore was the leading country in the Globalization Index 2024 in the field of economic globalization. The 2024 edition of the index uses data from the year 2022. Belgium and the Netherlands followed in the places behind. The era of globalization The beginning of the current era of increasing economic globalization was signaled by the creation of the Bretton Woods institutions toward the end of the Second World War. These institutions acted as the foundation for the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and World Trade Organization. The institutions, and their modern equivalents, sought to reduce the barriers on international trade in goods, services and capital markets. In the decades following their inception international trade has skyrocketed to become a cornerstone of the international economy, as demonstrated by trends in global export volume of trade in goods from 1950. Economic globalization Countries that are perceived as more economically globalized are those with low tariffs on imports, more free-trade agreements, regulation that accommodates foreign investment and lower non-tariff barriers to trade such as safety regulations on imports. However, economic globalization fails to capture the entire picture in regards to globalization processes and their impact on countries. As such, analysts have placed attention on the social and political effects on globalization as seen in the index for social globalization and index for political organization. To see the combined results of the multiple globalization indexes see the Top 100 countries in the Globalization Index.

The European Recovery Program, more commonly known as the Marshall Plan, was a U.S. initiative to promote Europe's economic recovery in the aftermath of the Second World War. Between 1948 and 1952, the U.S. distributed approximately 13.3 billion U.S. dollars between the non-communist states of Western Europe, including Greece and Turkey. Notable exceptions from this aid were Spain, due to Franco's unpopularity in the U.S. (although this changed with the Pact of Madrid in 1953), and Finland, who opted out as they did not want to strain relations with the Soviet Union. While money was roughly split between nations based on population size, larger, industrialized countries received a disproportionately higher share of the aid as it was believed their success would trickle down to smaller states. Economic insignificance? The term "Marshall Plan" has become something of a synonym for economic recovery plans in recent decades, yet the modern consensus is that the economic impact of the original was fairly overstated at the time. This investment of capital did help, but European recovery was well underway before the first installments were paid by the U.S, and it was European integration which laid the groundwork for recovery. Unlike the period following the First World War, the victorious powers had learned that cooperation between former adversaries, rather than punishment and reparations, would be the key to future success. It was the ideological influence of the Marshall Plan had the largest impact; Western European business structures became more Americanized, international trade barriers and tariffs were removed, and the transition to more capitalist economies eventually led to the most prosperous period ever recorded in European history, known as the "Golden Age" (1950-1973). The Molotov Plan The initial proposal, made by George C. Marshall, actually invited the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc states to take part in the offer, although this was a token gesture that U.S. knew would never be accepted. The Marshall Plan was announced in June 1947, just a few months after the Truman Doctrine; this was where the U.S. pledged to contain communist expansion across the globe, and is often regarded as the beginning of the Cold War. Not only did the Soviet Union reject the U.S. proposal, but Moscow also forbade any other Eastern Bloc country from taking part; instead the Soviets launched the Molotov Plan, which consolidated their economic power in the Eastern Bloc. While this plan initially rewarded Poland and Czechoslovakia for rejecting Americanization, the heavy reparations placed on the Axis powers meant that it was of little benefit to the likes of East Germany, Hungary, or Romania. Nonetheless, as the Marshall Plan changed the economic direction of Western Europe throughout the Cold War, the Molotov Plan helped shape communist economic development in the East. Eventually both plans developed into much larger endeavors, as the Mutual Security Act of 1951 saw American economic influence stretch beyond Europe, and the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) did the same for the Soviet Union.