Merchandise trade in Small states
Small states: Merchandise trade was 70.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Merchandise trade in Small states, 1960–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Small states stood at 70.4%.
The figure is up 4.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Small states peaked at 138.8% in 1976 and was at its lowest, 63.6%, in 1993.
Small states ranks 3rd of 45 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Small states, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 84.7% | — |
| 1961 | 86.0% | +1.5% |
| 1962 | 82.3% | -4.3% |
| 1963 | 82.8% | +0.7% |
| 1964 | 85.9% | +3.7% |
| 1965 | 83.2% | -3.1% |
| 1966 | 82.1% | -1.3% |
| 1967 | 78.8% | -4.0% |
| 1968 | 83.8% | +6.3% |
| 1969 | 88.6% | +5.7% |
| 1970 | 90.1% | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 103.7% | +15.1% |
| 1972 | 94.2% | -9.1% |
| 1973 | 98.8% | +4.9% |
| 1974 | 126.6% | +28.1% |
| 1975 | 130.7% | +3.2% |
| 1976 | 138.8% | +6.3% |
| 1977 | 126.6% | -8.8% |
| 1978 | 113.3% | -10.5% |
| 1979 | 108.6% | -4.2% |
| 1980 | 113.6% | +4.6% |
| 1981 | 114.0% | +0.3% |
| 1982 | 100.5% | -11.8% |
| 1983 | 90.1% | -10.4% |
| 1984 | 82.8% | -8.1% |
| 1985 | 75.5% | -8.8% |
| 1986 | 78.9% | +4.4% |
| 1987 | 74.4% | -5.7% |
| 1988 | 71.7% | -3.6% |
| 1989 | 79.1% | +10.4% |
| 1990 | 67.1% | -15.2% |
| 1991 | 67.8% | +1.0% |
| 1992 | 65.5% | -3.4% |
| 1993 | 63.6% | -2.8% |
| 1994 | 65.9% | +3.5% |
| 1995 | 68.6% | +4.2% |
| 1996 | 72.0% | +5.0% |
| 1997 | 72.1% | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 70.0% | -2.8% |
| 1999 | 67.2% | -4.1% |
| 2000 | 74.1% | +10.3% |
| 2001 | 71.6% | -3.3% |
| 2002 | 68.9% | -3.8% |
| 2003 | 68.7% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 68.3% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 72.2% | +5.8% |
| 2006 | 77.4% | +7.1% |
| 2007 | 73.5% | -5.0% |
| 2008 | 77.2% | +5.1% |
| 2009 | 64.7% | -16.2% |
| 2010 | 69.8% | +7.9% |
| 2011 | 79.2% | +13.5% |
| 2012 | 78.0% | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 78.7% | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 74.8% | -5.1% |
| 2015 | 67.1% | -10.2% |
| 2016 | 65.5% | -2.4% |
| 2017 | 66.4% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 70.4% | +6.0% |
| 2019 | 66.9% | -4.9% |
| 2020 | 64.5% | -3.6% |
| 2021 | 73.7% | +14.1% |
| 2022 | 80.5% | +9.3% |
| 2023 | 73.3% | -9.0% |
| 2024 | 70.4% | -3.9% |
| 2025 | 70.4% | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 83.8% | 78.8% | 88.6% | 10 |
| 1970s | 113.1% | 90.1% | 138.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 88.1% | 71.7% | 114.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 68.0% | 63.6% | 72.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 71.7% | 64.7% | 77.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 71.7% | 65.5% | 79.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 72.1% | 64.5% | 80.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Small states
More private sector data for Small states
- Food imports 16.0% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 60.8% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 141.38 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 19.2% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 43.9% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 100.88 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 4,958 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2991 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 2.68 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 6,948 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Small states?
- Merchandise trade in Small states was 70.4% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Small states?
- The highest recorded value was 138.8% in 1976.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Small states?
- The lowest recorded value was 63.6% in 1993.
- How does Small states rank for merchandise trade?
- Small states ranks 3rd out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Small states?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Small states 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 — 66 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.