Xifres de comerç exterior de Puerto Rico

Foreign Trade in Figures

Puerto Rico's economy is highly dependent on foreign trade, and they are extremely open to it, which accounted for 96.7% of GDP in 2021. The country mainly exports petroleum oils (8.8%), petroleum gas (3.9%), motor vehicles (3.1%), electronic integrated circuits and microassemblies (3%), and human and animal blood prepared for therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic uses (2.5%), while imports include motor vehicles (5.1%), petroleum oils (4.7%), automatic data processing machines (4%), telephone sets (3.8%), and medicaments (2.9%).

Besides the United States, Puerto Rico's main trade partners are Mexico, China, Canada, Japan, Germany, and the South Korea. The island has the largest non-contiguous Foreign Trade Zone project in the United States, which allows companies to obtain significant financial savings, since items can be processed within a zone while eliminating the custom duty rate of such product. Puerto Rico is subject to trade agreements signed by the United States and while the island has established relations with other countries, particularly in Latin America, the establishment of such relations requires permission from either the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. Congress. 

According to the last available data from the World Bank, Puerto Rican exports of goods and services in 2018 totalled USD 60.5 billion, while imports amounted to USD 46.4 billion - resulting on a trade surplus of USD 14.1 billion. While imports increased when compared to the previous year, exports decreased during the same period - mainly due to the impacts of hurricane Maria. Nevertheless, exports still accounted for a larger share of GDP (60%), while imports were 46%.