Xifres de comerç exterior de Finlàndia

Foreign Trade in Figures

Finland is a highly industrialised country whose economy relies heavily on foreign trade, which represented 72% of its GDP in 2020 (World Bank – latest data available). In the same year, Finland mainly exported petroleum oils (6%), paper (5.4%) and motor cars (4.2%); importing crude oil (5%), cars (4.5%), petroleum oils (3%), parts of motor vehicles and medicaments (2.5% each). The forest industry is vital for the country’s economy: in 2020, the value of exported Finnish forest industry products totalled EUR 10.4 billion, covering 18% of the country’s exports of goods (-14% year-on-year in real terms - Natural Resources Institute Finland).

According to data by Comtrade, the main trading partners were Germany (13.5%), Sweden (10.4%), the U.S. (8.3%), the Netherlands (6.5%), and China (5.2%); while the country’s imports came chiefly from Germany (15.4%), Sweden (10.9%), Russia (9.8%), and China (9%).

Finland's trade balance had traditionally been positive in the past, but its performance deteriorated in the last decade, alternating slightly positive results with negative ones. In 2020, the total export of goods (at USD 66.2 billion, -9.9% y-o-y) almost matched the total value of imports (USD 68.1 billion, -7.5% y-o-y); whereas export of services stood at USD 28.8 billion against almost USD 31.7 billion of import (with an annual double-digit decrease of 18.6% and 14.8%, respectively - data by WTO). According to the latest figures from Statistics Finland, goods exports grew past pre-pandemic levels in the third quarter of 2021, but service exports did not; with the current account being EUR 2 billion in surplus as of Q3/2021.