Merchandise imports from high-income economies in China
China: Merchandise imports from high-income economies was 68.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Merchandise imports from high-income economies in China, 1961–2023
Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise imports.
Analysis
China recorded 68.1% for merchandise imports from high-income economies in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 47 years on record.
The figure is down 1.9% on the previous year and down 5.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise imports from high-income economies in China peaked at 92.0% in 1992 and was at its lowest, 68.1%, in 2023.
That places China 74th out of 206 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 47 years of available data.
Merchandise imports from high-income economies in China, year by year
| Year | % of total merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 82.2% | — |
| 1978 | 85.2% | +3.6% |
| 1979 | 86.7% | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 88.4% | +1.9% |
| 1981 | 87.9% | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 84.9% | -3.4% |
| 1983 | 85.6% | +0.8% |
| 1984 | 90.1% | +5.2% |
| 1985 | 91.3% | +1.4% |
| 1986 | 91.9% | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 91.6% | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 89.8% | -2.0% |
| 1989 | 89.1% | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 90.9% | +2.0% |
| 1991 | 91.6% | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 92.0% | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 91.0% | -1.1% |
| 1994 | 90.8% | -0.2% |
| 1995 | 89.6% | -1.3% |
| 1996 | 88.6% | -1.1% |
| 1997 | 87.3% | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 88.4% | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 87.9% | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 84.4% | -4.0% |
| 2001 | 84.8% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 84.0% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 81.4% | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 80.3% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 78.8% | -1.9% |
| 2006 | 77.6% | -1.5% |
| 2007 | 75.7% | -2.3% |
| 2008 | 73.8% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 75.0% | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 73.3% | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 71.4% | -2.6% |
| 2012 | 70.7% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 71.8% | +1.6% |
| 2014 | 71.8% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 74.1% | +3.3% |
| 2016 | 74.3% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 72.8% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 71.5% | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 70.3% | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 70.8% | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 70.3% | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 69.4% | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 68.1% | -1.9% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 68.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 56.4%, 1.2× the median. (59 countries reporting)
- China's 68.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 59.6%, 1.1× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 82.2% | 82.2% | 82.2% | 1 |
| 1970s | 85.9% | 85.2% | 86.7% | 2 |
| 1980s | 89.1% | 84.9% | 91.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 89.8% | 87.3% | 92.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 79.6% | 73.8% | 84.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 72.2% | 70.3% | 74.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 69.6% | 68.1% | 70.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near China
More private sector data for China
- Merchandise trade 32.6% (2025)
- Food imports 8.1% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 49.3% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 2.58 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 2.4% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 91.2% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 3.77 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 2,682 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1934 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 5.48 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise imports from high-income economies in China?
- Merchandise imports from high-income economies in China was 68.1% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest merchandise imports from high-income economies recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 92.0% in 1992.
- What is the lowest merchandise imports from high-income economies recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 68.1% in 2023.
- How does China rank for merchandise imports from high-income economies?
- China ranks 74th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is merchandise imports from high-income economies rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as part of Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 47 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Merchandise imports from high-income economies are the sum of merchandise imports by the reporting economy from high-income economies according to the World Bank classification of economies. Data are expressed as a percentage of total merchandise imports by the economy. Data are computed only if at least half of the economies in the partner country group had non-missing data.