Trade Trends in 8 Charts
Which Countries Export and Import the Most?
Top two exporters? |
Top two importers? |
| #1: China | #1: United States |
| #2: United States | #2: China |
Where is the Most Economic Dynamism?
It’s in Asia. In terms of purchasing power parity, two things are clear from this chart. Over 25 years, China’s growth has been profound, reshaping the world economy. As the United States, Japan, and European economies slow in their contribution to global GDP, India and China are on an upward trajectory.
Who Will Gain from a U.S.-Japan Trade Deal?
President Trump recently announced the United States would begin negotiating a bilateral trade deal with Japan. We have a very strong trading relationship with Japan, including through imports and direct foreign investment by Japanese companies in the United States. The chart above, shows the value of U.S. exports to Japan state by state.
Oil Trade as a Share of Global Consumption Reached a Record 68.8% in 2017
Global oil trade grew by 4.3% in 2017. China is the world’s largest net oil importer, demanding 11.5% more oil in 2017 than the prior year. Russia was the largest net exporter in 2017.
Digital Trade Has the Bandwidth to Grow
So far, WTO members have agreed not to apply cross-border tariffs on e-commerce. As a share of global trade, transactions involving digital assets and trade in ideas will continue to grow. That’s a lot of bandwidth needed to accommodate digital trade’s takeoff.
The Trade Deficit Numbers Don’t Tell the Whole Story
We’ve posted other articles on why the national accounting of trade deficits doesn’t explain the true value of imports to the U.S. economy, or accurately reflect where value is added in the production of goods. Nonetheless, there remains a perception of “unfairness” or “imbalance” when the value of U.S. imports from China greatly exceeds the value of what we export. Here’s a snapshot of how the deficit has widened over the last decade.
The Quiet Strength of Commercial Services
From transportation services, to travel and tourism, to charges for the use of proprietary rights, such as trademarks, copyrights, industrial processes and designs, and rights arising from research and development, trade in services is a vital part of the global economy.
Nearly three-quarters of American jobs are in services industries and we export over $730 billion as a major player in global services trade. Given the exponential growth of digitally enabled services, this area of global trade policy will only become more prominent.
Andrea Durkin is the Editor-in-Chief of TradeVistas and Founder of Sparkplug, LLC. She is a nonresident Senior Fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and an adjunct fellow with CSIS. Ms. Durkin previously served as a U.S. Government trade negotiator and has proudly taught International Trade for the last fourteen years as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Georgetown University’s Master of Science in Foreign Service program.
