With Belarus facing possible sanctions for helping Russia invade Ukraine, it’s worth taking a look at the country’s trade profile. Belarus has a gross domestic product of $62.5 billion, around one-tenth the size of its neighbor Poland. It mainly trades regionally, except for buying consumer products from China, and its small economy means sanctions won't…

The Russian economy is a unique engine, without globally significant manufacturing, but powerful in its capacity to generate fuels, and a handful of valuable natural resources, such as wood, gold, and fertilizers. Here are 10 essential things to know about Russia’s exports: 1. Russia’s top trading partner is China. In 2021, it shipped $68.1 billion…

The prospect of a Russian war in Ukraine has rattled global markets. Russia is a top producer of commodities from grains to diamonds. The concern about Ukraine has mostly revolved around the country’s large agriculture sector. In 2021, the nation of 41.1 million was the world’s fourth biggest cereals exporter, behind only the U.S., Argentina,…

As Vietnam moves up the rankings of most prosperous countries, we’re getting more of a sense of exactly where the nation of 97 million will fit in the global economy. Already, it’s clear that Vietnam is becoming a key manufacturing base for consumer products destined for Europe and the U.S., and an important part of…

One of the big winners in the global economy in 2022 is expected to be Vietnam. The county of 97 million is benefiting from manufacturers moving more factories to its export zones, as well as from an ambitious new regional trade agreement. As Vietnam recovers from Covid, its exports are expected to surge, according to…

For two decades, China’s manufacturing and export sector has seemed to only be going one direction: up. The latest notch: A record trade surplus of $676.4 billion in 2021, up from $524 billion in 2020. Overall for the year, Chinese exports rose 29.9% to $3.4 trillion, the highest total value of goods ever shipped out…

TDM Insight: Top Ten Trade Trends of 2021 Global trade hoisted itself back on track in 2021 after a devastating 2020, and will stabilize itself in 2022, according to the World Trade Organization, and an analysis by Trade Data Monitor, the world’s premier source of trade statistics. Fears about supply chains crumbling and consumers failing…

Chinese imports increased faster than its exports in November, thanks in part to a massive injection of fuel shipments, particularly coal, to cope with recent power outages and fuel shortages. Overall, China increased imports 31.7%, to $253.8 billion, while exports grew 22%, rising to $325.5 billion, cutting the country’s trade surplus with the rest of…

Bottlenecks at U.S. ports have raised the alarm about supply chains, but the manufacture and shipping of essential goods from the U.S.’s biggest supplier of goods are operating smoothly, suggesting that supply chain troubles are easing, according to an analysis by Trade Data Monitor, the world’s top source of trade statistics. Exports from China, by…

If China is the chef in the kitchen making us all food, there’s reason to believe that the global economy might be getting less hungry in the near future. In other words, in September, the Chinese factories that anchor the world’s top manufacturer and top exporter bought less than expected of the raw materials they…

The recent bottlenecks in ocean shipping and in ports hit by Covid-19 outbreaks have spotlighted the economic power of one of the world’s most important crops: soybeans. With Chinese buyers waiting for better margins before buying, and a lack of shipping capacity, exports are down by volume, but, thanks to higher prices due to shipping…

The global economy is getting back to normal, but supply chains are not exactly returning to where they were before the Covid-19 pandemic. Consider this: In August, Chinese shipments of textiles fell 14.8% year-on-year, off a low base in 2020, to $12.5 billion, and exports of mobile phones declined 24.4% to $7.4 billion. However, sales…

In the ongoing disruption of the global economy, Vietnam is emerging as a clear winner. Its economy is expected to grow by 4.8% of GDP in 2021, according to the World Bank. To be sure, the Covid-19 pandemic has hit Vietnam this summer, after the country was largely successful at curtailing the virus in 2020.…

China’s industrial sector is headed for a slowdown in the second half of 2021, according to an analysis by Trade Data Monitor, the world’s premier source of trade statistics. In July, overall exports increased 19.4%, to $282.7 billion, compared to the same month a year earlier, below analysts’ expectations. In June, they had increased 32.2%…

Like other Meditereanen and Middle Eastern countries, Israel has been diligently diversifying exports, and is now seeking out new markets for trade growth. Israeli manufacturing and logistic firms, and export promotion agencies and the government, have been finding new markets and opportunities, creating a pathway for Israeli companies to compete around the world. The new…

The lithium-ion battery supply chain runs through China and Latin America. The world’s top two exporters of the raw material needed to make electric batteries -- lithium carbonate -- are Chile and Argentina, according to an analysis by Trade Data Monitor, the world’s top source for trade statistics. But now the Latin American countries have…

Once again, China posted robust headline trade numbers in June, showing off its status as the world’s top power in the global trading economy. Total exports increased 32% year-on-year in June to $281.4 billion. For the first half of 2021, exports rose to 39% to $1.5 trillion. Overall imports in June increased 37% to $229.9…

For Latin American firms and officials, global trade seems divided into two big, rich markets: Asian developing economies led by China gobbling up commodities, and rich consumers in the U.S. buying manufactured goods. This state of affairs has been shaped by two important forces: aggressive industrialization in Asia, and manufacturing outsourcing in the U.S. which…

As the world emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic, China, the U.S., and other top economies are renewing their commitments to green energy. The world's nenewable energy capcaty increased by 45% in 2020, the largest increased in over 20 years, according to a recent report by the International Energy Agency. The growth was driven by a…

For years, economists marveled at China’s history-shaping growth in manufacturing exports. But as this April’s trade data from Beijing illustrates, it’s time to start paying more attention to the ballooning of shipments to China. Chinese imports in April increased 43.1% year-on-year to $221.1 billion, the biggest jump since January 2011. As the global economy recovers…

The Covid-19 pandemic reordered the global economy as billions of people learned to work from home, crippling demand for everything we use to get around, from shoes to petroleum. One of the commodities that got whacked by Covid in 2020, because it is so tied to the automotive industry, and is now staging a comeback,…

It is China’s exploding wealth, rising middle classes, and expanding appetite for meat that make it the world’s top purchaser of soybeans. In 2020, China imported 100.3 million tons, worth $39.5 billion, of the legume, which is a key ingredient in making soybean meal as feed for swine. That was almost double the amount of…

It was March 2020 that marked the depths of the Covid-19 economic crisis. Factories closed. Shops shuttered. Consumer locked their doors and wallets. Last month’s Chinese exports signals that the global economy has found its way back. Spring is here. Wallets are open. In March, Chinese exports increased 30.7% year-on-year to $241.1 billion. That’s significant…

Looking for Love Outside the EU The trade consequences of Brexit already include a dramatic shrinking of commerce with the European Union, an expansion of trade with other allies, redrawing of supply chains for companies, and the separate counting of foreign trade with Northern Ireland, according to an analysis of import and export statistics from…