Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside was 27.0% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe, 1964–2023
Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise imports.
Analysis
Zimbabwe recorded 27.0% for merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in 2023. That is the highest value across all 46 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 10.0% on the previous year and up 75.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe peaked at 27.0% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 1966.
Zimbabwe ranks 75th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe, year by year
| Year | % of total merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 0.9% | — |
| 1965 | 5.2% | +457.6% |
| 1966 | 0.1% | -97.7% |
| 1981 | 2.8% | +2200.4% |
| 1982 | 1.7% | -39.5% |
| 1983 | 4.4% | +166.0% |
| 1984 | 5.7% | +27.6% |
| 1985 | 5.4% | -5.3% |
| 1986 | 2.7% | -49.1% |
| 1987 | 3.3% | +20.4% |
| 1988 | 3.5% | +6.3% |
| 1989 | 4.3% | +22.4% |
| 1990 | 5.4% | +26.6% |
| 1991 | 3.1% | -42.8% |
| 1992 | 13.8% | +345.3% |
| 1993 | 6.2% | -55.2% |
| 1994 | 5.1% | -17.7% |
| 1995 | 6.0% | +17.3% |
| 1996 | 6.3% | +6.4% |
| 1997 | 5.0% | -21.3% |
| 1998 | 6.6% | +31.6% |
| 1999 | 6.9% | +4.5% |
| 2000 | 5.3% | -22.9% |
| 2001 | 7.1% | +33.9% |
| 2002 | 6.3% | -10.4% |
| 2003 | 5.4% | -14.3% |
| 2004 | 10.0% | +84.1% |
| 2005 | 9.3% | -7.3% |
| 2006 | 8.4% | -9.0% |
| 2007 | 10.4% | +23.2% |
| 2008 | 8.5% | -18.5% |
| 2009 | 8.7% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 13.8% | +58.2% |
| 2011 | 14.8% | +7.2% |
| 2012 | 14.9% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 15.4% | +3.7% |
| 2014 | 17.3% | +11.7% |
| 2015 | 23.3% | +35.2% |
| 2016 | 18.8% | -19.5% |
| 2017 | 19.4% | +3.2% |
| 2018 | 19.0% | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 18.4% | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 22.8% | +23.7% |
| 2021 | 23.2% | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 24.6% | +6.1% |
| 2023 | 27.0% | +10.0% |
Zimbabwe compared with similar countries
- Zimbabwe's 27.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 29.9%, 91% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zimbabwe's 27.0% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 33.0%, 82% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | +2200.4% | 0.1% | 2.8% |
| 1965 | +457.6% | 0.9% | 5.2% |
| 1992 | +345.3% | 3.1% | 13.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.1% | 0.1% | 5.2% | 3 |
| 1980s | 3.7% | 1.7% | 5.7% | 9 |
| 1990s | 6.4% | 3.1% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.9% | 5.3% | 10.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.5% | 13.8% | 23.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.4% | 22.8% | 27.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
- 72 Mexico 28.0% compare
- 73 Turkmenistan 27.6% compare
- 74 Tajikistan 27.1% compare
- 76 Mauritius 27.0% compare
- 77 Azerbaijan 26.5% compare
- 78 Ecuador 26.5% compare
More private sector data for Zimbabwe
- Merchandise trade 38.7% (2025)
- Food imports 19.0% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 58.3% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 10.11 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 21.6% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 6.7% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 9.71 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 572.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1895 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 30.61 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe?
- Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside in Zimbabwe was 27.0% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 27.0% in 2023.
- What is the lowest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 1966.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside?
- Zimbabwe ranks 75th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 75.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Zimbabwe data come from?
- The figures come from Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as part of Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 46 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region are the sum of merchandise imports by the reporting economy from other low- and middle-income economies in other World Bank regions 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.