China vs United States of America: Merchandise imports by the reporting economy
Merchandise imports by the reporting economy over time
- China
- United States of America
How they compare
United States of America currently reports 3.08 trillion current US$ against 2.46 trillion current US$ in China, a difference of 627.88 billion current US$.
That makes United States of America's figure about 1.3 times China's.
Across all 47 years both countries report, United States of America has been ahead every year.
China ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 1st of 206 countries.
United States of America has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | United States of America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 657.90 million current US$ | 14.83 billion current US$ | 14.18 billion current US$ | United States of America |
| 1970s | 11.84 billion current US$ | 199.31 billion current US$ | 187.47 billion current US$ | United States of America |
| 1980s | 32.36 billion current US$ | 345.75 billion current US$ | 313.39 billion current US$ | United States of America |
| 1990s | 110.73 billion current US$ | 730.09 billion current US$ | 619.35 billion current US$ | United States of America |
| 2000s | 579.33 billion current US$ | 1.59 trillion current US$ | 1.01 trillion current US$ | United States of America |
| 2010s | 1.66 trillion current US$ | 2.29 trillion current US$ | 622.60 billion current US$ | United States of America |
| 2020s | 2.37 trillion current US$ | 2.87 trillion current US$ | 496.67 billion current US$ | United States of America |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher merchandise imports by the reporting economy, China or United States of America?
- United States of America, at 3.08 trillion current US$ against 2.46 trillion current US$ in China as of 2023.
- What is the difference in merchandise imports by the reporting economy between China and United States of America?
- 627.88 billion current US$, with United States of America ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States of America?
- 47 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2023.
- How do China and United States of America rank globally for merchandise imports by the reporting economy?
- China ranks 2nd and United States of America ranks 1st of 206 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Merchandise imports by the reporting economy are the total merchandise imports by the reporting economy from the rest of the world, as reported in the IMF's Direction of trade database. Data are in current U.S. dollars.