2024-05-08 21:28:18
The monetary value of trade (imports and exports) in agricultural products between the European Union and the rest of the world decreased by 3.2 percent (€13.5 billion) in 2023 on an annual basis to €410.9 billion. This is revealed by the latest data of Eurostat, published today on the website of the statistical agency, BTA reported.
Last year, the EU exported €228.6 billion worth of agricultural products and imported €182.3 billion, generating a trade surplus of €46.3 billion. Compared to 2022, last year the export of European agricultural products (in monetary terms) remained unchanged, but the import decreased significantly – by 6.8 percent.
Over a 10-year period, between 2013 and 2023, EU trade in agricultural products increased by 56.2 percent, or from €263.1 billion to €410.9 billion, representing an average annual growth of 4.6 percent. Over the same period, exports of agricultural goods from the EU grew faster (4.7 percent) than imports (4.4 percent).
The UK and Brazil are the EU’s largest agricultural trading partners.
In 2023, the UK was the EU’s main agricultural trading partner, accounting for 22 per cent (€48.6 billion) of all EU agricultural exports. In second place remains the USA, which imported 12 percent (27.5 billion euros) of European exports of agricultural products, followed by China with a share of 6 percent (13.5 billion euros), Switzerland with 5 percent (12 .1 billion euros), Japan with 3 percent (7.2 billion euros) and Russia with 3 percent (6.6 billion euros).
At the same time, imports of agricultural products into the EU mainly came from Brazil, which accounted for 9 percent (€16.9 billion) of EU imports, Great Britain with 8 percent (€15.8 billion), China with 7 per cent (13.3 billion euros), the USA with 7 per cent (13.1 billion euros), Ukraine with 5 per cent (9.5 billion euros) and Norway with 5 per cent (9.2 billion euros).