Merchandise trade in Kiribati
Kiribati: Merchandise trade was 147.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Merchandise trade in Kiribati, 1970–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Kiribati stood at 147.8%. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 41.6% on the previous year and up 122.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Kiribati peaked at 147.8% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 46.2%, in 1994.
Kiribati ranks 10th of 204 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 56 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Kiribati, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 103.8% | — |
| 1971 | 121.4% | +17.0% |
| 1972 | 91.4% | -24.7% |
| 1973 | 105.3% | +15.2% |
| 1974 | 65.0% | -38.3% |
| 1975 | 96.5% | +48.6% |
| 1976 | 90.2% | -6.5% |
| 1977 | 98.9% | +9.6% |
| 1978 | 103.9% | +5.1% |
| 1979 | 113.2% | +8.9% |
| 1980 | 60.3% | -46.7% |
| 1981 | 51.0% | -15.4% |
| 1982 | 48.9% | -4.3% |
| 1983 | 54.8% | +12.2% |
| 1984 | 84.3% | +53.8% |
| 1985 | 72.7% | -13.8% |
| 1986 | 61.6% | -15.4% |
| 1987 | 67.7% | +9.9% |
| 1988 | 70.5% | +4.2% |
| 1989 | 74.4% | +5.4% |
| 1990 | 82.1% | +10.4% |
| 1991 | 77.6% | -5.5% |
| 1992 | 68.3% | -12.0% |
| 1993 | 52.6% | -23.0% |
| 1994 | 46.2% | -12.1% |
| 1995 | 61.2% | +32.4% |
| 1996 | 52.8% | -13.8% |
| 1997 | 56.1% | +6.3% |
| 1998 | 52.1% | -7.2% |
| 1999 | 64.7% | +24.2% |
| 2000 | 58.7% | -9.2% |
| 2001 | 70.8% | +20.6% |
| 2002 | 70.9% | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 57.2% | -19.3% |
| 2004 | 58.6% | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 68.5% | +16.9% |
| 2006 | 60.5% | -11.6% |
| 2007 | 57.9% | -4.3% |
| 2008 | 56.5% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 52.1% | -7.8% |
| 2010 | 46.5% | -10.6% |
| 2011 | 51.5% | +10.7% |
| 2012 | 55.6% | +7.8% |
| 2013 | 51.6% | -7.2% |
| 2014 | 58.4% | +13.3% |
| 2015 | 66.3% | +13.5% |
| 2016 | 71.7% | +8.1% |
| 2017 | 65.5% | -8.7% |
| 2018 | 55.6% | -15.1% |
| 2019 | 66.4% | +19.4% |
| 2020 | 64.3% | -3.2% |
| 2021 | 64.8% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 77.8% | +20.0% |
| 2023 | 112.1% | +44.1% |
| 2024 | 104.3% | -6.9% |
| 2025 | 147.8% | +41.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 99.0% | 65.0% | 121.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 64.6% | 48.9% | 84.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 61.4% | 46.2% | 82.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 61.2% | 52.1% | 70.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 58.9% | 46.5% | 71.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 95.2% | 64.3% | 147.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kiribati
More private sector data for Kiribati
- Food imports 41.4% (2021)
- Manufactures imports 43.0% (2021)
- Merchandise imports 496.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 97.2% (2021)
- Manufactures exports 2.1% (2021)
- Merchandise exports 20.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 146.53 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0573 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate -16.67 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 3,634 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Kiribati?
- Merchandise trade in Kiribati was 147.8% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Kiribati?
- The highest recorded value was 147.8% in 2025.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Kiribati?
- The lowest recorded value was 46.2% in 1994.
- How does Kiribati rank for merchandise trade?
- Kiribati ranks 10th out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Kiribati?
- Over the last ten years it is up 122.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kiribati data come from?
- The figures come from World Trade Organization (WTO), published as part of Merchandise trade (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General merchandise trade includes goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e. It is the total of merchandise exports plus merchandise imports. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.