Country import demand

Palau
import demand

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

PLW1995-2024 coverage270 active partner marketsEconomy and income contracted
Latest imports$195.9M2024 reported
Import growth-4.5%Year on year
Population17.7KReported population
GDP per capita$15.6KCurrent-dollar GDP
Trade openness0%Exports + imports / GDP

The country import read

What does Palau import?

In 2024, Palau recorded $195.9M in reported imports. Imports changed -4.5% year on year and +18% annualized over three years. Ships and boats 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
$120.1M
2014
$115.2M
2015
$119.9M
2016
$135.1M
2017
$127.6M
2018
$131.2M
2019
$93.1M
2020
$91.8M
2021
$119.1M
2022
$181.0M
2023
$205.2M
2024
$195.9M

Demand drivers

The economy behind import demand

Macro and structural indicators add context to reported imports.

GDP$276.7M2024 macro context
GDP growth-0.4%Five-year CAGR
Population growth-0.1%Five-year CAGR
Investment rate0%National rate
Savings rate0%National rate
Trade openness0%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 Palau
RankSectorImportsShareImport partnersActive HS6
1Ships and boatsHS2 89$43.1M22%1211
2HS2 sector 99HS2 99$22.5M11.5%171
3MachineryHS2 84$21.1M10.8%33441
4Electrical machineryHS2 85$5.2M2.6%30240
5Fish and crustaceansHS2 03$1.2M0.6%876
6Iron and steelHS2 72$1.8M0.9%945
7AluminiumHS2 76$1.5M0.8%1319
8CopperHS2 74$23.3K0%710
9Knitted clothingHS2 61$468.7K0.2%1137
10Animal origin productsHS2 05$8.00%12

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 concentration3,397Partner HHI
Top 3 partner share88.5%Reported concentration
FTA partner markets0Reported count
Average distance10,891 kmCalculated average
Macro resilienceEconomy and income contractedCountry 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 Iso3PLW
Exports Usd$18.7M
Imports Usd$195.9M
Trade Balance Usd-$177.2M
Yoy Exports Growth Pct223.2%
Yoy Imports Growth Pct-4.5%
Exports Cagr 3y Pct52.6%
Imports Cagr 3y Pct18%
Export Partner Hhi3,397
Export Product Hhi3,579.7
Momentum Score100
Risk Score34.9
Gdp Million Usd276.7 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Usd$15.6K
Population17,695
Labor ForceNot reported
Investment Rate PctNot reported
Savings Rate PctNot reported
Secondary Education PctNot reported
Tertiary Education PctNot reported
Total Factor ProductivityNot reported
Trade Openness PctNot reported
Exports Gdp PctNot reported
Num Active Partners270
Num Fta Partners0
Num Wto Partners169
Num Eu Partners28
Num Shared Border Partners0%
Num Shared Language Partners77%
Avg Partner Distance Km10,891 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 Fta0
Pct Partners Shared Language28.5%
Pct Partners Shared Border0%
Avg Applied Tariff PctNot reported
Avg Mfn Tariff PctNot reported
Avg Preferential Tariff PctNot reported
Tariff Advantage PpNot reported
Avg Distance All Partners Km11,043 km
Num Border Partners0
Num Colonial Partners120
Avg Substitution Elasticity-8.1
Pct Products High Elasticity67.2
Pct Products Low Elasticity1.7
Real Market Potential6,076,562.7
Foreign Market Potential538,569.8

Supplier context

Country Iso3PLW
All History Lane Count175
Current Lane Count9
Critical Lane Count0
High Attention Lane Count2
High Volatility Lane Count4
Unrecovered Drawdown Lane Count2
Declining Demand Lane Count0
Concentrated Market Lane Count3
Access Friction Lane Count9
Buyer Macro Weakness Lane Count0
Monitored Exports Current Usd$15.7M
Attention Exports Usd$13.5M
Critical Exports Usd$0.0
High Volatility Exports Usd$4.6M
Unrecovered Drawdown Exports Usd$142.1K
Non Fta Exports Usd$15.7M
Monitored Attention Share Pct86.3%
Monitored Critical Share Pct0%
Fta Covered Exports Share Pct0%
Export Weighted Volatility Cv0.9
Export Weighted Below Peak Pct0.6%
Export Weighted Distance Km11,836 km
Export Weighted Tariff PctNot reported
Latest Data Year2,024
First Data Year1,995
Country Years Count30
Total Exports Latest Usd$18.7M
Total Imports Latest Usd$195.9M
Trade Balance Latest Usd-$177.2M
Exports Yoy Latest Pct223.2%
Exports Cagr 3y Latest Pct52.6%
Gdp Latest Million Usd276.7 million USD
Gdp Per Capita Latest Usd$15.6K
Population Latest17,695
Investment Rate Latest PctNot reported
Savings Rate Latest PctNot reported
Trade Openness Latest PctNot reported
Exports Gdp Latest PctNot reported
Active Partners Latest270
Fta Partners Latest0
Foreign Market Potential Latest538,569.8
Gdp 5y Cagr Pct-0.4%
Gdp Per Capita 5y Cagr Pct-0.3%
Population 5y Cagr Pct-0.1%
Partner Hhi Latest3,397
Partner Top1 Share Latest Pct50.1%
Partner Top3 Share Latest Pct88.5%
Partner Hhi All Avg4,961.5
Partner Hhi All Max8,685.1
Product Hhi Latest3,579.7
Product Top1 Share Latest Pct55.1%
Product Top3 Share Latest Pct82.1%
Product Hhi All Avg2,611.7
Product Hhi All Max4,150.8
Total Exports Attention Share Pct72.3%
Total Exports Critical Share Pct0%
Attention LevelHigh attention
Primary Risk DriverMarket access exposure
Macro Resilience LabelEconomy and income contracted

Annual import history

YearImportsExportsBalanceImports YoY
1995$26.8M$29.8M$3.0M+0%
1996$47.6M$33.1M-$14.4M+77.7%
1997$48.2M$35.8M-$12.4M+1.4%
1998$38.6M$29.7M-$8.8M-20%
1999$34.0M$36.4M$2.4M-11.8%
2000$48.5M$30.6M-$17.9M+42.8%
2001$49.6M$27.0M-$22.5M+2.1%
2002$68.4M$27.1M-$41.3M+38%
2003$56.7M$15.7M-$41.0M-17.1%
2004$73.9M$21.2M-$52.7M+30.3%
2005$65.4M$30.5M-$34.8M-11.5%
2006$72.9M$30.5M-$42.4M+11.5%
2007$64.2M$23.9M-$40.4M-11.8%
2008$99.6M$19.8M-$79.7M+55%
2009$77.8M$11.8M-$66.0M-21.8%
2010$81.2M$13.0M-$68.1M+4.3%
2011$94.9M$12.6M-$82.4M+17%
2012$125.9M$17.6M-$108.3M+32.6%
2013$120.1M$11.8M-$108.3M-4.6%
2014$115.2M$14.7M-$100.6M-4.1%
2015$119.9M$14.1M-$105.8M+4.1%
2016$135.1M$21.7M-$113.4M+12.6%
2017$127.6M$20.6M-$107.0M-5.5%
2018$131.2M$26.5M-$104.7M+2.8%
2019$93.1M$18.6M-$74.5M-29%
2020$91.8M$13.7M-$78.1M-1.3%
2021$119.1M$5.3M-$113.8M+29.7%
2022$181.0M$7.6M-$173.4M+52%
2023$205.2M$5.8M-$199.4M+13.4%
2024$195.9M$18.7M-$177.2M-4.5%

Import sectors

RankHS2SectorImportsShareImport partnersActive HS6
189Ships and boats$43.1M22%1211
299HS2 sector 99$22.5M11.5%171
384Machinery$21.1M10.8%33441
485Electrical machinery$5.2M2.6%30240
503Fish and crustaceans$1.2M0.6%876
672Iron and steel$1.8M0.9%945
776Aluminium$1.5M0.8%1319
874Copper$23.3K0%710
961Knitted clothing$468.7K0.2%1137
1005Animal origin products$8.00%12

Questions about this profile

Palau import demand, in context

Short answers for import and supplier research.

What does the Palau import profile measure?

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

What is the latest reported import value for Palau?

Palau recorded $195.9M in reported imports in 2024.

Which sectors lead Palau's imports?

Ships and boats leads by reported import value at $43.1M.

How many years of Palau 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.

Continue your research

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Compare countries, products, sectors, and suppliers using reported trade data.

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.