Country import demand

Bhutan
import demand

A reported view of Bhutan's import scale, sector demand, supplier breadth, economy, and trade history.

BTN1995-2024 coverage270 active partner marketsMacro trend resilient
Latest imports$1.5B2024 reported
Import growth+17.1%Year on year
Population791.5KReported population
GDP per capita$3.8KCurrent-dollar GDP
Trade openness34.2%Exports + imports / GDP

The country import read

What does Bhutan import?

In 2024, Bhutan recorded $1.5B in reported imports. Imports changed +17.1% year on year and +7.6% annualized over three years. Iron and steel was the largest displayed import sector.

Import history

A long view of demand

Latest twelve years from the reported country series.

Reported imports by year

2013
$579.3M
2014
$484.8M
2015
$667.6M
2016
$615.4M
2017
$723.0M
2018
$892.3M
2019
$876.3M
2020
$851.6M
2021
$1.2B
2022
$1.4B
2023
$1.2B
2024
$1.5B

Demand drivers

The economy behind import demand

Macro and structural indicators add context to reported imports.

GDP$3.0B2024 macro context
GDP growth1.9%Five-year CAGR
Population growth0.7%Five-year CAGR
Investment rate55.2%National rate
Savings rate32.2%National rate
Trade openness34.2%Exports + imports / GDP

Import portfolio

The sectors shaping demand

All returned HS2 sectors ranked by latest import value.

Import demand by HS2All returned · 2024
Leading import sectors for Bhutan
RankSectorImportsShareImport partnersActive HS6
1Iron and steelHS2 72$72.9M5%12167
2AircraftHS2 88$81.0M5.6%1910
3Salt, sulphur, earths and stoneHS2 25$9.7M0.7%954
4BeveragesHS2 22$9.6M0.7%2323
5Inorganic chemicalsHS2 28$1.8M0.1%8127
6Wood and wood articlesHS2 44$44.0M3%2378
7Coffee, tea and spicesHS2 09$3.5M0.2%1838
8Electrical machineryHS2 85$174.4M12%47255
9MachineryHS2 84$169.8M11.7%50474
10Optical and medical instrumentsHS2 90$16.6M1.1%42140

Import values are reported observations. Full rows remain in the downloads.

Supply diversification

Where import exposure is spread

Partner breadth, concentration, access, and distance add supplier context.

Supplier markets270Reported partner count
Partner concentration8,403.2Partner HHI
Top 3 partner share95.7%Reported concentration
FTA partner markets7Reported count
Average distance8,383 kmCalculated average
Macro resilienceMacro trend resilientCountry context
Complete country valuesOpen the full import evidenceFull profile, history, and HS2 sector fields remain available here and in the downloads.

Profile fields

Year2,024
Country Iso3BTN
Exports Usd$308.7M
Imports Usd$1.5B
Trade Balance Usd-$1.1B
Yoy Exports Growth Pct-40.5%
Yoy Imports Growth Pct17.1%
Exports Cagr 3y Pct15%
Imports Cagr 3y Pct7.6%
Export Partner Hhi8,403.2
Export Product Hhi1,981.7
Momentum Score-23.8
Risk Score51.9
Gdp Million Usd3,012.9 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Usd$3.8K
Population791,524
Labor Force416.8
Investment Rate Pct55.2%
Savings Rate Pct32.2%
Secondary Education Pct57.9%
Tertiary Education Pct9%
Total Factor Productivity512.6
Trade Openness Pct34.2%
Exports Gdp Pct6%
Num Active Partners270
Num Fta Partners7
Num Wto Partners169
Num Eu Partners28
Num Shared Border Partners2%
Num Shared Language Partners1%
Avg Partner Distance Km8,383 km
Avg Partner Gdp Million Usd533,678,518.3 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 Fta3
Pct Partners Shared Language0.4%
Pct Partners Shared Border0.7%
Avg Applied Tariff Pct0.1%
Avg Mfn Tariff Pct0.1%
Avg Preferential Tariff Pct0%
Tariff Advantage Pp0.1
Avg Distance All Partners Km8,509 km
Num Border Partners55
Num Colonial Partners0
Avg Substitution Elasticity-9.2
Pct Products High Elasticity66.3
Pct Products Low Elasticity5.3
Real Market Potential553,022.5
Foreign Market Potential187,753.6

Supplier context

Country Iso3BTN
All History Lane Count466
Current Lane Count47
Critical Lane Count1
High Attention Lane Count18
High Volatility Lane Count24
Unrecovered Drawdown Lane Count14
Declining Demand Lane Count0
Concentrated Market Lane Count30
Access Friction Lane Count4
Buyer Macro Weakness Lane Count2
Monitored Exports Current Usd$293.5M
Attention Exports Usd$186.5M
Critical Exports Usd$20.8M
High Volatility Exports Usd$80.8M
Unrecovered Drawdown Exports Usd$145.2M
Non Fta Exports Usd$14.8M
Monitored Attention Share Pct63.6%
Monitored Critical Share Pct7.1%
Fta Covered Exports Share Pct95%
Export Weighted Volatility Cv1
Export Weighted Below Peak Pct32.3%
Export Weighted Distance Km1,456 km
Export Weighted Tariff Pct0.5%
Latest Data Year2,024
First Data Year1,995
Country Years Count30
Total Exports Latest Usd$308.7M
Total Imports Latest Usd$1.5B
Trade Balance Latest Usd-$1.1B
Exports Yoy Latest Pct-40.5%
Exports Cagr 3y Latest Pct15%
Gdp Latest Million Usd3,012.9 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Latest Usd$3.8K
Population Latest791,524
Investment Rate Latest Pct55.2%
Savings Rate Latest Pct32.2%
Trade Openness Latest Pct34.2%
Exports Gdp Latest Pct6%
Active Partners Latest270
Fta Partners Latest7
Foreign Market Potential Latest187,753.6
Gdp 5y Cagr Pct1.9%
Gdp Per Capita 5y Cagr Pct1.4%
Population 5y Cagr Pct0.7%
Partner Hhi Latest8,403.2
Partner Top1 Share Latest Pct91.6%
Partner Top3 Share Latest Pct95.7%
Partner Hhi All Avg7,539.2
Partner Hhi All Max9,281.9
Product Hhi Latest1,981.7
Product Top1 Share Latest Pct31%
Product Top3 Share Latest Pct67.8%
Product Hhi All Avg2,215.8
Product Hhi All Max4,405
Total Exports Attention Share Pct60.4%
Total Exports Critical Share Pct6.7%
Attention LevelWatch
Primary Risk DriverTrade remains below historical peaks
Macro Resilience LabelMacro trend resilient

Annual import history

YearImportsExportsBalanceImports YoY
1995$73.1M$110.2M$37.2M+0%
1996$74.3M$108.2M$33.9M+1.7%
1997$74.7M$116.8M$42.1M+0.5%
1998$50.2M$48.3M-$1.9M-32.8%
1999$57.2M$51.5M-$5.8M+14.1%
2000$60.2M$125.1M$64.8M+5.2%
2001$63.1M$121.5M$58.4M+4.8%
2002$82.8M$196.5M$113.7M+31.2%
2003$147.2M$189.9M$42.7M+77.9%
2004$284.3M$243.0M-$41.3M+93.1%
2005$187.6M$413.3M$225.8M-34%
2006$156.8M$344.4M$187.6M-16.4%
2007$192.1M$417.2M$225.1M+22.5%
2008$302.9M$204.7M-$98.3M+57.7%
2009$376.1M$172.4M-$203.7M+24.2%
2010$538.8M$250.9M-$287.9M+43.3%
2011$743.7M$276.3M-$467.4M+38%
2012$574.3M$231.6M-$342.7M-22.8%
2013$579.3M$299.1M-$280.2M+0.9%
2014$484.8M$388.1M-$96.7M-16.3%
2015$667.6M$158.2M-$509.4M+37.7%
2016$615.4M$259.1M-$356.3M-7.8%
2017$723.0M$341.1M-$381.9M+17.5%
2018$892.3M$414.5M-$477.8M+23.4%
2019$876.3M$363.6M-$512.7M-1.8%
2020$851.6M$256.0M-$595.6M-2.8%
2021$1.2B$202.7M-$966.5M+37.3%
2022$1.4B$436.3M-$993.8M+22.3%
2023$1.2B$518.6M-$724.6M-13.1%
2024$1.5B$308.7M-$1.1B+17.1%

Import sectors

RankHS2SectorImportsShareImport partnersActive HS6
172Iron and steel$72.9M5%12167
288Aircraft$81.0M5.6%1910
325Salt, sulphur, earths and stone$9.7M0.7%954
422Beverages$9.6M0.7%2323
528Inorganic chemicals$1.8M0.1%8127
644Wood and wood articles$44.0M3%2378
709Coffee, tea and spices$3.5M0.2%1838
885Electrical machinery$174.4M12%47255
984Machinery$169.8M11.7%50474
1090Optical and medical instruments$16.6M1.1%42140

Questions about this profile

Bhutan import demand, in context

Short answers for import and supplier research.

What does the Bhutan import profile measure?

It combines reported imports, annual history, HS2 sectors, supplier breadth, economy context, and calculated indicators for Bhutan.

What is the latest reported import value for Bhutan?

Bhutan recorded $1.5B in reported imports in 2024.

Which sectors lead Bhutan's imports?

Iron and steel leads by reported import value at $72.9M.

How many years of Bhutan import history are available?

This profile contains 30 annual rows covering 1995 through 2024.

What drives import demand?

GDP, population, investment, savings, and trade openness provide demand context.

Are the growth and concentration values forecasts?

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

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Data source

OECD trade statistics with CEPII context

OECD (2025), Balanced international merchandise trade statistics (BIMTS) - HS2017-6D, OECD Data Explorer (accessed on 2026-08-29). 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.