Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income

Low income: Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within was 22.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
22.6%
Change on year
up 15.4%
Rank
6th
of 46 groups
All-time high
24.8%
in 1984
All-time low
7.3%
in 1962
Years of data
64
1960–2023

Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income, 1960–2023

510152025196019912023

Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise imports.

Analysis

In 2023, merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income stood at 22.6%.

That represents a change of up 15.4% on the previous year and up 1.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income peaked at 24.8% in 1984 and was at its lowest, 7.3%, in 1962.

That places Low income 6th out of 46 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.

Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income, year by year

Annual values for Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region (% of total merchandise imports) in Low income, 1960 to 2023.
Year % of total merchandise imports Change
1960 8.9%
1961 8.5% -3.8%
1962 7.3% -14.4%
1963 9.4% +29.5%
1964 11.0% +16.7%
1965 10.9% -0.7%
1966 11.1% +1.9%
1967 10.2% -8.2%
1968 13.0% +27.5%
1969 13.1% +0.4%
1970 14.3% +9.5%
1971 13.8% -4.0%
1972 12.8% -6.7%
1973 14.4% +12.1%
1974 14.4% +0.2%
1975 12.4% -13.8%
1976 9.8% -21.1%
1977 11.0% +12.6%
1978 13.6% +23.5%
1979 16.2% +18.6%
1980 17.2% +6.4%
1981 19.1% +11.3%
1982 21.8% +14.0%
1983 22.0% +0.9%
1984 24.8% +12.4%
1985 20.8% -15.9%
1986 16.1% -22.5%
1987 15.7% -2.9%
1988 14.3% -8.4%
1989 16.0% +11.5%
1990 12.3% -22.9%
1991 12.1% -2.1%
1992 13.1% +8.5%
1993 13.8% +5.4%
1994 13.6% -1.3%
1995 14.3% +4.8%
1996 17.0% +19.3%
1997 18.5% +8.6%
1998 14.8% -20.0%
1999 18.1% +22.5%
2000 15.4% -14.9%
2001 11.9% -22.5%
2002 14.1% +18.5%
2003 16.7% +18.1%
2004 17.5% +4.9%
2005 20.8% +18.9%
2006 19.5% -6.7%
2007 16.3% -16.2%
2008 15.2% -6.8%
2009 15.7% +3.4%
2010 15.5% -1.6%
2011 19.7% +26.9%
2012 20.6% +4.6%
2013 22.4% +8.8%
2014 22.1% -1.1%
2015 20.2% -8.6%
2016 21.4% +5.6%
2017 21.3% -0.3%
2018 22.4% +5.2%
2019 23.0% +2.7%
2020 23.1% +0.2%
2021 20.3% -12.1%
2022 19.6% -3.4%
2023 22.6% +15.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 10.4% 7.3% 13.1% 10
1970s 13.3% 9.8% 16.2% 10
1980s 18.8% 14.3% 24.8% 10
1990s 14.8% 12.1% 18.5% 10
2000s 16.3% 11.9% 20.8% 10
2010s 20.9% 15.5% 23.0% 10
2020s 21.4% 19.6% 23.1% 4

Countries ranked near Low income

  1. 3 Lesotho 85.0% compare
  2. 4 Botswana 84.1% compare
  3. 5 Lao People's Democratic Republic 81.9% compare
  4. 6 Cambodia 80.9% compare
  5. 7 Eswatini 76.0% compare
  6. 8 South Sudan 64.9% compare
  7. 9 Zimbabwe 64.2% compare

See the full ranking of 249 places →

More private sector data for Low income

All data for Low income →

Frequently asked questions

What is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income?
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income was 22.6% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
What is the highest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within recorded in Low income?
The highest recorded value was 24.8% in 1984.
What is the lowest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within recorded in Low income?
The lowest recorded value was 7.3% in 1962.
How does Low income rank for merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within?
Low income ranks 6th out of 46 groups with data for 2023.
Is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within rising or falling in Low income?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Low income data come from?
The figures come from Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as part of Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region (% of total merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Low income. Statizoid, drawing on Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://private-sector.statizoid.com/stat/merchandise-imports-from-low-and-middle-income-economies-within-region-percent-of-total/low-income/

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About this data

Indicator
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region (% of total merchandise imports)
Unit
% of total merchandise imports
Source
Staff estimates, World Bank (WB)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
249 places, 13,090 data points, 1960–2023
Last refreshed

Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region are the sum of merchandise imports by the reporting economy from other low- and middle-income economies in the same World Bank region according to the World Bank classification of economies. Data are 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. No figures are shown for high-income economies, because they are a separate category in the World Bank classification of economies.