Xifres de comerç exterior d'Ucraïna

Foreign Trade in Figures

Ukraine is a very open economy, with a share of foreign trade in the country's GDP of 78% in 2023 (World Bank). In the same year, the main exported products were sunflower-seed, safflower or cotton-seed oil (13.8% - the country being the n.1 exporter worldwide), maize or corn (13.7%), wheat and meslin (8.1%), iron ores and concentrates (4.9%), and soya beans (3.5%); whereas imports were led by petroleum oils (12.3%), motor vehicles (6.4%), petroleum gas (3.0%), medicaments (2.7%), and telephone sets (1.8% - data Comtrade).

Foreign trade has been hardly hit by the conflict with Russia, which has traditionally been a major supplier of oil and gas, accounting for almost a quarter of the country's total imports. Ukraine is seeking to develop its trade relations with the member states of the European Union, with a view to emancipating from Russia. The EU and Ukraine have provisionally applied their Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) since January 2016. Furthermore, prior to the war, maritime transport had served as the primary export route for Ukrainian commodities, accounting for both value and volume. However, with the onset of the war, there was a shift, and road and rail transport saw increased importance, therefore Ukraine's land border crossings with EU countries, predominantly Poland, emerged as the primary routes for Ukrainian exports. In 2023, Poland was the main export destination  (13.2% of the total), followed by Romania (10.4%), China (6.7%), Türkiye (6.5%), Germany (5.6%), Spain (5.5%), and Italy (4.2%). On the other hand, Ukraine's main suppliers were China (16.4%), Poland (10.3%), Germany (8.0%), Türkiye (7.4%), and the United States (4.5% - data Comtrade).

According to WTO data, Ukraine exported USD 36 billion and imported USD 63.5 billion worth of goods in 2023 (-18.3% and +14.9%, respectively); whereas exports of services were stable at USD 16.4 billion and imports lost 9%, totalling USD 25.1 billion. Therefore, the deficit of the external balance on goods and services plummeted to 20.9% of GDP in 2023, way higher than the levels recorded before the conflict (World Bank). In 2024, Ukraine’s trade turnover grew by 13% to USD 112.3 billion, up from USD 99.4 billion in 2023, according to the State Customs Service. The country imported USD 70.7 billion in goods and exported USD 41.6 billion. Of the imports, 65% were machines, equipment, and transport (USD 25 billion), chemical industry products (USD 11.7 billion), and fuel and energy products (USD 8.9 billion). The top three exports were food products (USD 24.6 billion), metals and steel products (USD 4.4 billion), and mineral machinery, equipment, and transport (USD 3.5 billion).