Merchandise trade in Vanuatu
Vanuatu: Merchandise trade was 43.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Merchandise trade in Vanuatu, 1979–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Vanuatu stood at 43.8%.
That represents a change of up 7.1% on the previous year and down 7.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Vanuatu peaked at 89.9% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 27.5%, in 2022.
Vanuatu ranks 128th of 204 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 47 years of available data.
Merchandise trade in Vanuatu, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 87.2% | — |
| 1980 | 89.9% | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 79.1% | -12.1% |
| 1982 | 72.5% | -8.4% |
| 1983 | 79.2% | +9.3% |
| 1984 | 78.2% | -1.3% |
| 1985 | 76.6% | -2.1% |
| 1986 | 59.3% | -22.6% |
| 1987 | 63.1% | +6.4% |
| 1988 | 56.8% | -9.9% |
| 1989 | 60.4% | +6.2% |
| 1990 | 68.1% | +12.8% |
| 1991 | 50.2% | -26.3% |
| 1992 | 50.7% | +1.1% |
| 1993 | 50.4% | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 48.8% | -3.2% |
| 1995 | 49.3% | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 49.0% | -0.7% |
| 1997 | 47.3% | -3.4% |
| 1998 | 48.4% | +2.4% |
| 1999 | 46.3% | -4.4% |
| 2000 | 41.5% | -10.2% |
| 2001 | 42.6% | +2.7% |
| 2002 | 41.9% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 42.0% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 45.2% | +7.7% |
| 2005 | 47.3% | +4.7% |
| 2006 | 60.5% | +27.9% |
| 2007 | 54.0% | -10.8% |
| 2008 | 62.8% | +16.2% |
| 2009 | 59.2% | -5.7% |
| 2010 | 49.8% | -15.9% |
| 2011 | 48.2% | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 46.9% | -2.6% |
| 2013 | 40.8% | -13.1% |
| 2014 | 42.8% | +4.9% |
| 2015 | 47.5% | +11.0% |
| 2016 | 51.9% | +9.4% |
| 2017 | 41.8% | -19.6% |
| 2018 | 43.6% | +4.4% |
| 2019 | 38.9% | -10.8% |
| 2020 | 34.1% | -12.3% |
| 2021 | 35.9% | +5.3% |
| 2022 | 27.5% | -23.4% |
| 2023 | 44.9% | +63.0% |
| 2024 | 40.9% | -8.8% |
| 2025 | 43.8% | +7.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 87.2% | 87.2% | 87.2% | 1 |
| 1980s | 71.5% | 56.8% | 89.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 50.8% | 46.3% | 68.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 49.7% | 41.5% | 62.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.2% | 38.9% | 51.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 37.9% | 27.5% | 44.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Vanuatu
- 125 Burundi 45.2% compare
- 126 Uzbekistan 44.5% compare
- 127 Saudi Arabia 44.2% compare
- 129 Togo 43.7% compare
- 130 France 43.7% compare
- 131 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 43.5% compare
More private sector data for Vanuatu
- Food imports 25.0% (2011)
- Manufactures imports 52.3% (2011)
- Merchandise imports 515.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 85.3% (2011)
- Manufactures exports 8.2% (2011)
- Merchandise exports 78.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 232.72 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0576 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 4 % change on previous year (2025)
- Merchandise imports (current US$), per capita 1,537 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Vanuatu?
- Merchandise trade in Vanuatu was 43.8% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Vanuatu?
- The highest recorded value was 89.9% in 1980.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Vanuatu?
- The lowest recorded value was 27.5% in 2022.
- How does Vanuatu rank for merchandise trade?
- Vanuatu ranks 128th out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Vanuatu?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Vanuatu 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 — 47 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.