Xifres de comerç exterior de Polònia

Foreign Trade in Figures

Poland is open to international trade, which represents 124% of its GDP (World Bank, latest data available). The geographical location gives Poland strategic importance: the country is situated halfway between Paris and Moscow and between Stockholm and Budapest, and it has important ports that are connected to the North Sea through the Baltic Sea. In addition, the country constitutes an excellent place for the export of merchandise to the former Soviet republics. According to figures by Statistics Poland, the country mainly exports machinery and transport equipment (35.9%), manufactured goods (18.2%), food and live animals (11.3%), and chemicals and related products (9.9%). Imports are led by similar product categories: machinery and transport equipment (30.9%), manufactured goods (16.3%), chemicals and related products (14.3%), and food and live animals (6.6%).

In 2022, the main trading partners were Germany (27.8%), the Czech Republic (6.6%), France (5.7%) and the United Kingdom (4.9%); while the top import origins were Germany (20.2%), China (14.8%), Italy (4.6%), the U.S. (4.3%), and Russia (4.2%). Overall, the EU accounted for 75.6% of Poland’s total exports and 51.3% of its imports (data Statistics Poland).

Since Poland became a member of the European Union, its exports have increased consistently. The country historically had a structurally negative trade balance; nevertheless, since 2013 this trend has reversed: when computing both goods and services, in 2022 Poland had a positive trade balance estimated at 1.4% of its GDP (it was 3.3% one year earlier - World Bank). According to data from WTO, in 2022 the country exported USD 360.5 billion worth of goods (+5.8% year-on-year), whereas imports stood at USD 381.1 billion (+11.4% y-o-y). Concerning services, exports stood at USD 95.7 billion (+17.8% y-o-y), with imports increasing at a similar pace (+15.7% y-o-y, to USD 57.4 billion). The latest figures from Statistics Poland show that foreign trade turnover in January-October 2023 in exports at current prices amounted to USD 318 billion (marking an increase of 4.1% on the same period one year earlier), while imports stood at USD 306.6 billion (-5.3% y-o-y). The overall balance was positive by USD 11.4 billion, while in the same period of 2022 year, it was negative and amounted to USD 18.1 billion. The EU accounted for 74.8% of exports and 53.9% of imports.