Xifres de comerç exterior dels Països Baixos

Foreign Trade in Figures

Dutch prosperity has always been based on its international trade, and the geographic location of the country makes it a European trade hub, with Rotterdam being the largest European port. With high-tech industries and services, foreign trade is one of the main pillars of the Dutch economy, representing an impressive 145.3% of GDP (World Bank – latest data available), one of the most open and outward-oriented economies in the world. The country mainly exports petroleum oils other than crude, processed foodstuff (plants, flowers, dairy products, meat, fruit and vegetables), line telephony electrical apparatus and medicaments. Exports of mineral fuels were hit hardest in 2020, falling by more than 34.4% compared to the previous year. Most of the sales are re-exportations as the country plays the role of a European trade hub. Imports are led by line telephony electrical apparatus, petroleum oils, automatic data-processing machines, electronic integrated circuits, and vehicles. Independent SMEs accounted for 19.6% of the total value of goods exports, while large enterprises accounted for more than 51.7%.

El superávit económico de los Países Bajos se debe casi por completo a su comercio con los países de la Unión Europea. Los principales socios comerciales del país son Alemania (22,1%), Bélgica (10,2%), Francia (7,7%) y el Reino Unido (7,2%), mientras que las importaciones proceden principalmente de Alemania (17,7%), China (10,6%), Bélgica (9,8%) y Estados Unidos (8,1% - OMC).

The country has a structurally positive trade balance for goods and services, which stood at around 10.4% of GDP for 2020 according to the World Bank. In the same year, the country’s exports of goods were worth USD 674.8 billion (a decrease of 4.7% year-on-year), with imports slowing at a faster pace (USD 596 billion; -6.2%); whereas for commercial services exports stood at USD 186 billion (down by almost one-third y-o-y), and imports at USD 169 billion (-36.2% - data by WTO). The latest data from the National Statistical Office shows that Dutch goods trade was above the pre-pandemic level in the first half of 2021: in the first six months of 2021, goods exports were up by EUR 42 billion relative to one year previously (+6%), as imports increased by EUR 35 billion (8%).