Country export capability

United Kingdom
export capability

A reported view of United Kingdom's export scale, destination network, sector breadth, trade history, and market-access context. Use the indicators together; no single measure describes export readiness on its own.

GBR1995-2024 coverage270 active partner marketsMacro trend resilient
Latest exports$442.2B2024 reported value
Latest imports$753.4B2024 reported value
Trade balance-$311.2BExports minus imports
Export growth-5.3%Latest year-on-year change
Active partners270Latest reported markets

Country export profile overview

United Kingdom export data in one research view

This profile brings together export performance, trade balance, destination markets, HS2 sectors, partner breadth, history, and market-access context for country export research.

Export scale and balance

Start with the latest reported trade position

In 2024, United Kingdom recorded $442.2B in exports and $753.4B in imports. The resulting -$311.2B trade balance gives the latest country-level position a clear context.

Exports changed -5.3% year on year and show a calculated +0.5% three-year CAGR. CAGR is an annualized comparison of reported values, not a forecast.

Markets and sectors

See where export value is concentrated

USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands received $71.2B in reported exports, representing 16.1% of the latest country total. Machinery was the largest displayed HS2 export sector at $80.8B and 18.3% of exports.

The visible page highlights five leading destinations and five leading HS2 sectors, while the complete structured files retain every row supplied for this sample.

History and coverage

Read today's number against the long series

The country series covers 1995 through 2024, with 30 observed annual rows. That longer view helps separate a single-year movement from the broader export trend.

Partner counts, tariff context, concentration, exposure shares, and momentum are supporting indicators calculated from available trade observations. Missing values remain unavailable rather than estimated.

Economy and structure

The context around United Kingdom's export base

Macroeconomic and structural indicators add context to merchandise trade scale. They describe the country environment; they do not predict company performance or future exports.

GDP$3.7T2024 macro context
GDP per capita$53.2KCurrent-dollar GDP
Population69.2MReported population
Labor force35.5KReported labor force
Investment rate17.9%National investment rate
Savings rate15.6%National savings rate
Trade openness35.3%Exports + imports / GDP
Exports / GDP13.1%Merchandise exports / GDP
Secondary education91.7%Education context
Tertiary education30%Education context

Market signals

Where to look more closely next

Route-level risk and emerging-corridor signals for further research. These are calculated indicators, not forecasts.

Destination risk contextAll covered routes
Destination risk context for United Kingdom
DestinationAttentionAttention shareBelow peakApplied tariffPrimary reason
ChinaCHNCritical attention82.5%29.8%30.2%Tariff, distance or agreement conditions create market-access friction
IrelandIRLCritical attention56.3%32.5%0%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSAWatch18.4%24.1%4.7%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
BelgiumBELCritical attention40.8%39.8%0%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
China, Hong Kong Special Administrative RegionHKGCritical attention89.2%30.7%0%Tariff, distance or agreement conditions create market-access friction
NetherlandsNLDWatch27.2%40.6%0%Current trade remains materially below historical peaks
CanadaCANCritical attention70.9%37.5%7.3%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
GermanyDEUWatch12.1%39%0%Current trade remains materially below historical peaks
IndiaINDCritical attention39.7%34.1%53.2%Volatile products account for the largest observed corridor exposure
JapanJPNCritical attention80.5%28.5%4%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure

Full route coverage is retained. High attention means the route deserves closer product and access review.

Market opportunity signals

Product-market combinations worth investigating

All returned rows use buyer demand, exporter position, and calculated addressable-value fields. They are research signals, not forecasts.

Addressable-value signalsAll returned rows
Market opportunity signals for United Kingdom
RankMarket and productBuyer importsAddressable 3-year valueCurrent shareDemand signal
1ChinaHS6 260111 · Iron ores and concentrates: non-agglomerated$111.0B$119.1B0%Growing -2.6%
2USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsHS6 270900 · Oils: petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude$165.0B$113.8B0.9%Stable +1.1%
3ChinaHS6 270900 · Oils: petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude$291.6B$96.9B0.4%Growing -6.7%
4ChinaHS6 854231 · Electronic integrated circuits: processors and controllers, whether or not combined with memories, converters, logic circuits, amplifiers, clock and timing circuits, or other circuits$158.0B$93.1B0%Stable +10.5%
5IndiaHS6 270900 · Oils: petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude$130.1B$72.8B0.1%Accelerating -0.5%
6ChinaHS6 854232 · Electronic integrated circuits: memories$80.6B$65.7B0%Slowing +20.6%
7ChinaHS6 710812 · Metals: gold, non-monetary, unwrought (but not powder)$80.8B$64.8B0%Growing +2.4%
8ChinaHS6 120190 · Soya beans: other than seed, whether or not broken$47.8B$62.4B0%Declining -13.5%

Addressable value is a calculated field. Validate product, buyer, tariff, and route conditions before commercial decisions.

Detailed export portfolioHS4 lines beneath the leading sectorsOpen the detailed four-digit export table for United Kingdom.
All HS4 export lines2024 ranking
Top HS4 export lines for United Kingdom
RankHS4Parent HS2 sectorExportsShareActive HS6
18703HS4 detail codeVehicles (87) ↗$36.6B8.3%14
28411HS4 detail codeMachinery (84) ↗$32.7B7.4%8
37108HS4 detail codePrecious stones and metals (71) ↗$31.0B7%3
43004HS4 detail codePharmaceutical products (30) ↗$18.1B4.1%12
52709HS4 detail codeMineral fuels (27) ↗$15.7B3.5%1
68803HS4 detail codeAircraft (88) ↗$12.8B2.9%4
72710HS4 detail codeMineral fuels (27) ↗$10.8B2.4%5
82208HS4 detail codeBeverages (22) ↗$9.1B2.1%7
93002HS4 detail codePharmaceutical products (30) ↗$7.6B1.7%8
102711HS4 detail codeMineral fuels (27) ↗$5.8B1.3%7
118708HS4 detail codeVehicles (87) ↗$5.1B1.2%14
128517HS4 detail codeElectrical machinery (85) ↗$4.6B1%7

HS4 values are reported observations. The hierarchy is preserved; no missing descriptions are inferred.

The country export read

United Kingdom combines $442.2B in exports with a broad partner network.

In 2024, United Kingdom recorded $442.2B in reported exports and $753.4B in imports, producing a reported trade deficit of $311.2B. Exports changed -5.3% year on year and +0.5% annualized over three years. Machinery (HS2 84) was the largest displayed export sector by value.

Destination network

Where United Kingdom exports move

All returned destination lanes ranked by latest reported export value. Share is calculated against the country total. Review sources ↗

Latest reported destination lanesAll returned · 2024
Leading export destinations for United Kingdom
RankDestinationLatest exportsShareYear-on-year3-year CAGR
1USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$71.2B16.1%+3.5%+7.8%
2GermanyDEU$37.7B8.5%-5.3%-0.8%
3ChinaCHN$28.7B6.5%+3.5%+5.2%
4FranceFRA$28.4B6.4%+5.7%+5.1%
5NetherlandsNLD$28.2B6.4%-14%-6.2%
6IrelandIRL$24.3B5.5%-17.4%-2.5%
7Switzerland, LiechtensteinCHE$19.0B4.3%-28.9%-20.4%
8BelgiumBEL$14.9B3.4%-12.2%-0.7%
9SpainESP$10.9B2.5%-5%+0.3%
10China, Hong Kong Special Administrative RegionHKG$9.7B2.2%-36.3%+5.8%

Destination values are reported country-to-country observations. Full returned rows remain in the downloads.

Trade history

A long view of export scale

Latest twelve years from the 30-year reported country series. Context, not a forecast.

Reported exports by year

2013
$523.1B
2014
$488.2B
2015
$433.3B
2016
$388.9B
2017
$417.9B
2018
$460.3B
2019
$436.7B
2020
$373.1B
2021
$435.2B
2022
$504.5B
2023
$466.9B
2024
$442.2B

Partner network

Scale is only one part of export capability

Partner breadth, distance, agreements, and tariffs add context to reported exports.

FTA partner markets119Reported count
WTO partner markets169Reported count
EU partner markets28Reported count
Shared-border partners1Country context
Shared-language partners77Country context
Average partner distance6,737 kmCalculated average
Partners with FTA44.1%Calculated share
Applied tariff context0.1%Calculated average
MFN tariff context0.1%Calculated average
Tariff advantage+0.1 ppPreferential vs MFN

Exposure context

Signals to examine alongside export scale

Calculated or classified route and country context. Not predictions or recommendations.

Attention share40.9%

Covered value under attention

Critical share7.4%

Covered value marked critical

Below historical peak32.7%

Distance below route peaks

FTA-covered exports60%

Covered value with FTA context

Weighted tariff context0.1%

Export-weighted tariff

Macro contextMacro trend resilient

Primary attention driver: Market access exposure.

Momentum score-3.5

History-based indicator

Partner concentration568.1

Partner HHI

Product concentration121

Product HHI

Country attention level: Watch. Missing fields remain unavailable.

Complete country valuesOpen the full profile evidenceFull history, sectors, HS4, destinations, risk, opportunities, and source fields.

Profile fields

Year2,024
Country Iso3GBR
Exports Usd$442.2B
Imports Usd$753.4B
Trade Balance Usd-$311.2B
Yoy Exports Growth Pct-5.3%
Yoy Imports Growth Pct2.7%
Exports Cagr 3y Pct0.5%
Imports Cagr 3y Pct3.8%
Export Partner Hhi568.1
Export Product Hhi121
Momentum Score-3.5
Risk Score3.4
Gdp Million Usd3,686,033.04 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Usd$53.2K
Population69,226,000
Labor Force35,514.4
Investment Rate Pct17.9%
Savings Rate Pct15.6%
Secondary Education Pct91.7%
Tertiary Education Pct30%
Total Factor Productivity2,397
Trade Openness Pct35.3%
Exports Gdp Pct13.1%
Num Active Partners270
Num Fta Partners119
Num Wto Partners169
Num Eu Partners28
Num Shared Border Partners1
Num Shared Language Partners77
Avg Partner Distance Km6,737 km
Avg Partner Gdp Million Usd533,678,518.33 million USD
Avg Partner Gdp Per Capita Usd$15.8
Avg Buyer Biz Entry DaysNot reported
Avg Buyer Biz Entry Cost PctNot reported
Pct Partners With Fta44
Pct Partners Shared Language29
Pct Partners Shared Border0
Avg Applied Tariff Pct0.1%
Avg Mfn Tariff Pct0.1%
Avg Preferential Tariff Pct0%
Tariff Advantage Pp+0.1 pp
Avg Distance All Partners Km6,702
Num Border Partners25
Num Colonial Partners2,020
Avg Substitution Elasticity-10.9
Pct Products High Elasticity76
Pct Products Low Elasticity3
Real Market Potential1,919,336.2
Foreign Market Potential40,595.8

Exposure fields

Country Iso3GBR
All History Lane Count78,387
Current Lane Count71,675
Critical Lane Count493
High Attention Lane Count10,061
High Volatility Lane Count30,725
Unrecovered Drawdown Lane Count47,600
Declining Demand Lane Count420
Concentrated Market Lane Count31,038
Access Friction Lane Count10,937
Buyer Macro Weakness Lane Count4,145
Monitored Exports Current Usd$425.7B
Attention Exports Usd$174.2B
Critical Exports Usd$31.5B
High Volatility Exports Usd$148.1B
Unrecovered Drawdown Exports Usd$131.7B
Non Fta Exports Usd$167.9B
Monitored Attention Share Pct40.9%
Monitored Critical Share Pct7.4%
Fta Covered Exports Share Pct60%
Export Weighted Volatility Cv1
Export Weighted Below Peak Pct32.7%
Export Weighted Distance Km3,854 km
Export Weighted Tariff Pct0.1%
Latest Data Year2,024
First Data Year1,995
Country Years Count30
Total Exports Latest Usd$442.2B
Total Imports Latest Usd$753.4B
Trade Balance Latest Usd-$311.2B
Exports Yoy Latest Pct-5.3%
Exports Cagr 3y Latest Pct0.5%
Gdp Latest Million Usd3,686,033.04 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Latest Usd$53.2K
Population Latest69,226,000
Investment Rate Latest Pct17.9%
Savings Rate Latest Pct15.6%
Trade Openness Latest Pct35.3%
Exports Gdp Latest Pct13.1%
Active Partners Latest270
Fta Partners Latest119
Foreign Market Potential Latest40,595.8
Gdp 5y Cagr Pct5.1%
Gdp Per Capita 5y Cagr Pct4.3%
Population 5y Cagr Pct0.8%
Partner Hhi Latest568.1
Partner Top1 Share Latest Pct16.1%
Partner Top3 Share Latest Pct31.1%
Partner Hhi All Avg587.4
Partner Hhi All Max687.3
Product Hhi Latest121
Product Top1 Share Latest Pct6%
Product Top3 Share Latest Pct13.4%
Product Hhi All Avg108.1
Product Hhi All Max276.3
Total Exports Attention Share Pct39.4%
Total Exports Critical Share Pct7.1%
Attention LevelWatch
Primary Risk DriverMarket access exposure
Macro Resilience LabelMacro trend resilient

Annual country history

YearExportsImportsTrade balanceExports YoYExports CAGR 3Y
1995$215.6B$243.8B-$28.2BNot reportedNot reported
1996$234.1B$261.8B-$27.7B+8.5%Not reported
1997$249.1B$278.1B-$29.1B+6.4%Not reported
1998$242.2B$287.8B-$45.5B-2.7%+4%
1999$258.5B$308.2B-$49.7B+6.7%+3.4%
2000$286.0B$351.3B-$65.3B+10.6%+4.7%
2001$272.0B$340.3B-$68.2B-4.9%+3.9%
2002$272.4B$353.4B-$81.1B+0.1%+1.8%
2003$297.2B$401.7B-$104.6B+9.1%+1.3%
2004$339.0B$472.5B-$133.6B+14.1%+7.6%
2005$373.4B$498.4B-$125.0B+10.2%+11.1%
2006$414.2B$570.6B-$156.4B+10.9%+11.7%
2007$440.9B$637.5B-$196.5B+6.5%+9.2%
2008$470.0B$672.4B-$202.4B+6.6%+8%
2009$350.2B$525.8B-$175.6B-25.5%-5.4%
2010$398.0B$584.2B-$186.2B+13.7%-3.4%
2011$482.4B$675.8B-$193.4B+21.2%+0.9%
2012$459.4B$668.5B-$209.1B-4.8%+9.5%
2013$523.1B$639.1B-$116.0B+13.9%+9.5%
2014$488.2B$667.6B-$179.5B-6.7%+0.4%
2015$433.3B$605.3B-$172.0B-11.2%-1.9%
2016$388.9B$618.6B-$229.7B-10.2%-9.4%
2017$417.9B$622.0B-$204.1B+7.4%-5%
2018$460.3B$652.5B-$192.2B+10.1%+2%
2019$436.7B$669.3B-$232.6B-5.1%+3.9%
2020$373.1B$619.6B-$246.5B-14.6%-3.7%
2021$435.2B$674.2B-$239.0B+16.6%-1.9%
2022$504.5B$761.6B-$257.0B+15.9%+4.9%
2023$466.9B$733.5B-$266.6B-7.5%+7.8%
2024$442.2B$753.4B-$311.2B-5.3%+0.5%

Top export sectors

RankHS2SectorExportsShareExport partnersActive HS6
184Machinery$80.8B18.3%198515
287Vehicles$48.6B11%19287
371Precious stones and metals$43.7B9.9%16651
427Mineral fuels$35.4B8%17443
530Pharmaceutical products$27.3B6.2%19243
685Electrical machinery$27.1B6.1%197262
790Optical and medical instruments$20.7B4.7%194142
888Aircraft$14.5B3.3%16515
939Plastics$11.4B2.6%193129
1022Beverages$11.2B2.5%18124

Detailed HS4 export lines

RankHS4Parent HS2ExportsShareActive HS6
18703Vehicles (87)$36.6B8.3%14
28411Machinery (84)$32.7B7.4%8
37108Precious stones and metals (71)$31.0B7%3
43004Pharmaceutical products (30)$18.1B4.1%12
52709Mineral fuels (27)$15.7B3.5%1
68803Aircraft (88)$12.8B2.9%4
72710Mineral fuels (27)$10.8B2.4%5
82208Beverages (22)$9.1B2.1%7
93002Pharmaceutical products (30)$7.6B1.7%8
102711Mineral fuels (27)$5.8B1.3%7
118708Vehicles (87)$5.1B1.2%14
128517Electrical machinery (85)$4.6B1%7

Top export destinations

RankDestinationISO3ExportsShareYoYCAGR 3Y
1USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin IslandsUSA$71.2B16.1%+3.5%+7.8%
2GermanyDEU$37.7B8.5%-5.3%-0.8%
3ChinaCHN$28.7B6.5%+3.5%+5.2%
4FranceFRA$28.4B6.4%+5.7%+5.1%
5NetherlandsNLD$28.2B6.4%-14%-6.2%
6IrelandIRL$24.3B5.5%-17.4%-2.5%
7Switzerland, LiechtensteinCHE$19.0B4.3%-28.9%-20.4%
8BelgiumBEL$14.9B3.4%-12.2%-0.7%
9SpainESP$10.9B2.5%-5%+0.3%
10China, Hong Kong Special Administrative RegionHKG$9.7B2.2%-36.3%+5.8%

Destination risk context

RankDestinationAttentionAttention shareBelow peakApplied tariffPrimary reason
1China (CHN)Critical attention82.5%29.8%30.2%Tariff, distance or agreement conditions create market-access friction
2Ireland (IRL)Critical attention56.3%32.5%0%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
3USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands (USA)Watch18.4%24.1%4.7%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
4Belgium (BEL)Critical attention40.8%39.8%0%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
5China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKG)Critical attention89.2%30.7%0%Tariff, distance or agreement conditions create market-access friction
6Netherlands (NLD)Watch27.2%40.6%0%Current trade remains materially below historical peaks
7Canada (CAN)Critical attention70.9%37.5%7.3%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure
8Germany (DEU)Watch12.1%39%0%Current trade remains materially below historical peaks
9India (IND)Critical attention39.7%34.1%53.2%Volatile products account for the largest observed corridor exposure
10Japan (JPN)Critical attention80.5%28.5%4%Buyer-market concentration is the largest observed corridor exposure

Emerging corridor signals

RankDestinationHS6SignalMarket importsCurrent shareStrength
1Angola (AGO)293959new$108.1K100%100
2Afghanistan (AFG)620293new$244.3K43.7%100
3Angola (AGO)070190new$1.5M7.6%100
4Andorra (AND)870240new$188.1K100%100
5Armenia (ARM)870240new$3.4M3.8%100
6Bulgaria (BGR)721230new$38.9M0.6%100
7Benin (BEN)842122new$699.2K83.5%100
8Bahrain (BHR)870350new$354.6K100%100
9Argentina (ARG)870360new$6.8M24.5%100
10Benin (BEN)842220new$4.0M98.9%100

Market opportunity signals

RankMarketHS6Buyer importsAddressable 3-year valueCurrent shareSignal
1China (CHN)260111$111.0B$119.1B0%Growing (-2.6%)
2USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands (USA)270900$165.0B$113.8B0.9%Stable (+1.1%)
3China (CHN)270900$291.6B$96.9B0.4%Growing (-6.7%)
4China (CHN)854231$158.0B$93.1B0%Stable (+10.5%)
5India (IND)270900$130.1B$72.8B0.1%Accelerating (-0.5%)
6China (CHN)854232$80.6B$65.7B0%Slowing (+20.6%)
7China (CHN)710812$80.8B$64.8B0%Growing (+2.4%)
8China (CHN)120190$47.8B$62.4B0%Declining (-13.5%)

How to read this page

Separate reported scale from calculated context.

Reported exports, imports, trade balance, sector rows, destination rows, and annual history describe merchandise trade observations for the stated country and year.

CAGR, shares, concentration measures, tariff context, exposure shares, and momentum are calculated indicators built from the available observations. They help organize research but are not additional reported trade or forecasts.

Coverage runs from 1995 through 2024 for this profile. Missing values are shown as Not reported. Read the full methodology ↗

Reported observations

OECD BIMTS merchandise trade values are the primary series for this view.

Calculated indicators

Growth, share, HHI, tariff, and exposure fields are derived from available reported values.

Coverage limits

Unavailable values remain unavailable. No company sales, shipment records, or forecasts are implied.

Questions about this profile

United Kingdom export capability, in context

Short answers for readers comparing country export scale, partner breadth, and calculated trade indicators.

What does the United Kingdom export profile measure?

It combines reported exports, imports, history, destinations, HS2 sectors, partner context, and calculated indicators for United Kingdom.

What is the latest reported export value for United Kingdom?

United Kingdom recorded $442.2B in reported exports in 2024.

Which markets receive the most exports from United Kingdom?

USA, Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands leads by reported export value at $71.2B in 2024. Five destination lanes are highlighted.

Which sectors lead United Kingdom's exports?

Machinery leads by reported value at $80.8B. Five HS2 chapters are highlighted.

How many years of United Kingdom trade history are available?

This sample contains 30 observed annual rows covering 1995 through 2024. Missing observations are not estimated.

Are the growth and exposure values forecasts?

No. They are calculated or classified from reported observations, not forecasts or market-access guarantees.

Continue your research

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Compare countries, products, sectors, and routes using the available trade evidence and definitions.

Data source

OECD trade statistics with CEPII context

OECD (2025), Balanced international merchandise trade statistics (BIMTS) - HS2017-6D, OECD Data Explorer (accessed on 2026-08-28). OECD BIMTS is the primary trade series for this view. Supporting bilateral trade context uses CEPII BACI bilateral trade flows (202601) under Etalab 2.0 Open Licence. Yugalinks presents derived views of reported observations and calculated indicators. Data terms: OECD Terms & Conditions.