Merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America
North America: Merchandise imports from high-income economies was 55.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America, 1960–2023
Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise imports.
Analysis
North America recorded 55.6% for merchandise imports from high-income economies in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.7% on the previous year and up 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America peaked at 84.9% in 1972 and was at its lowest, 53.1%, in 2017.
That places North America 30th out of 47 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America, year by year
| Year | % of total merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 72.0% | — |
| 1961 | 73.4% | +2.0% |
| 1962 | 74.2% | +1.0% |
| 1963 | 74.5% | +0.3% |
| 1964 | 75.2% | +1.0% |
| 1965 | 77.8% | +3.5% |
| 1966 | 79.2% | +1.8% |
| 1967 | 81.0% | +2.2% |
| 1968 | 82.5% | +1.9% |
| 1969 | 83.9% | +1.7% |
| 1970 | 83.8% | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 84.6% | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 84.9% | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 83.1% | -2.1% |
| 1974 | 75.6% | -9.0% |
| 1975 | 75.6% | +0.1% |
| 1976 | 75.1% | -0.8% |
| 1977 | 73.6% | -2.0% |
| 1978 | 75.5% | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 73.4% | -2.8% |
| 1980 | 72.6% | -1.1% |
| 1981 | 75.4% | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 77.0% | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 77.7% | +0.9% |
| 1984 | 79.6% | +2.5% |
| 1985 | 81.2% | +2.0% |
| 1986 | 83.6% | +2.9% |
| 1987 | 82.7% | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 82.7% | -0.0% |
| 1989 | 80.6% | -2.5% |
| 1990 | 79.1% | -1.8% |
| 1991 | 78.8% | -0.4% |
| 1992 | 77.3% | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 76.2% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 75.4% | -1.1% |
| 1995 | 74.2% | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 72.4% | -2.4% |
| 1997 | 71.6% | -1.2% |
| 1998 | 71.1% | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 70.4% | -1.0% |
| 2000 | 68.6% | -2.6% |
| 2001 | 67.8% | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 66.0% | -2.5% |
| 2003 | 64.5% | -2.3% |
| 2004 | 62.7% | -2.9% |
| 2005 | 60.7% | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 58.9% | -3.0% |
| 2007 | 58.2% | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 57.2% | -1.7% |
| 2009 | 55.4% | -3.1% |
| 2010 | 54.1% | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 54.7% | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 55.0% | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 55.4% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 55.6% | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 54.3% | -2.4% |
| 2016 | 53.8% | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 53.1% | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 53.4% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 55.1% | +3.2% |
| 2020 | 54.1% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 53.7% | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 53.6% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 55.6% | +3.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 77.4% | 72.0% | 83.9% | 10 |
| 1970s | 78.5% | 73.4% | 84.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 79.3% | 72.6% | 83.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 74.7% | 70.4% | 79.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 62.0% | 55.4% | 68.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 54.4% | 53.1% | 55.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 54.2% | 53.6% | 55.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near North America
More private sector data for North America
- Merchandise trade 20.6% (2025)
- Food imports 7.3% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 77.9% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 4.09 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 10.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 52.8% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 2.74 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 7,145 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0828 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 4.2 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America?
- Merchandise imports from high-income economies in North America was 55.6% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest merchandise imports from high-income economies recorded in North America?
- The highest recorded value was 84.9% in 1972.
- What is the lowest merchandise imports from high-income economies recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.1% in 2017.
- How does North America rank for merchandise imports from high-income economies?
- North America ranks 30th out of 47 groups with data for 2023.
- Is merchandise imports from high-income economies rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North America 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
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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.