Transport services in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Transport services was 16.6% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Transport services in Papua New Guinea, 1976–2024
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service imports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for transport services in Papua New Guinea is 16.6%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 13.9% on the previous year and down 29.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, transport services in Papua New Guinea peaked at 70.2% in 1978 and was at its lowest, 14.5%, in 2018.
Papua New Guinea ranks 171st of 197 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Transport services in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 59.0% | — |
| 1977 | 65.8% | +11.5% |
| 1978 | 70.2% | +6.7% |
| 1979 | 66.6% | -5.2% |
| 1980 | 67.2% | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 58.2% | -13.4% |
| 1982 | 54.5% | -6.3% |
| 1983 | 55.1% | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 50.3% | -8.7% |
| 1985 | 52.4% | +4.2% |
| 1986 | 52.4% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 51.0% | -2.8% |
| 1988 | 47.7% | -6.5% |
| 1989 | 43.6% | -8.5% |
| 1990 | 35.6% | -18.3% |
| 1991 | 25.6% | -28.2% |
| 1992 | 18.2% | -28.8% |
| 1993 | 16.5% | -9.7% |
| 1994 | 28.7% | +74.2% |
| 1995 | 25.2% | -12.2% |
| 1996 | 23.1% | -8.2% |
| 1997 | 24.0% | +3.8% |
| 1998 | 20.3% | -15.6% |
| 1999 | 24.9% | +22.7% |
| 2000 | 21.1% | -15.2% |
| 2001 | 26.1% | +23.8% |
| 2002 | 22.5% | -13.7% |
| 2003 | 26.4% | +17.2% |
| 2004 | 28.0% | +6.0% |
| 2005 | 24.2% | -13.6% |
| 2006 | 24.2% | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 25.3% | +4.8% |
| 2008 | 29.9% | +18.2% |
| 2009 | 24.2% | -19.2% |
| 2010 | 21.6% | -10.9% |
| 2011 | 22.0% | +2.1% |
| 2012 | 20.9% | -4.9% |
| 2013 | 19.5% | -6.7% |
| 2014 | 23.5% | +20.6% |
| 2015 | 20.7% | -11.9% |
| 2016 | 19.4% | -6.4% |
| 2017 | 18.8% | -3.1% |
| 2018 | 14.5% | -23.1% |
| 2019 | 22.3% | +54.5% |
| 2020 | 17.2% | -22.9% |
| 2021 | 22.4% | +30.1% |
| 2022 | 25.3% | +12.8% |
| 2023 | 19.3% | -23.7% |
| 2024 | 16.6% | -13.9% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 16.6% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 40.5%, 41% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 16.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 31.2%, 53% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Transport services in Papua New Guinea 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | +74.2% | 16.5% | 28.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 65.4% | 59.0% | 70.2% | 4 |
| 1980s | 53.2% | 43.6% | 67.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 24.2% | 16.5% | 35.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.2% | 21.1% | 29.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.3% | 14.5% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 20.2% | 16.6% | 25.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More private sector data for Papua New Guinea
- Merchandise trade 62.0% (2025)
- Food imports 16.5% (2023)
- Manufactures imports 64.7% (2023)
- Merchandise imports 4.62 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 19.7% (2023)
- Manufactures exports 1.8% (2023)
- Merchandise exports 15.54 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 1,444 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.4782 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 11.21 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is transport services in Papua New Guinea?
- Transport services in Papua New Guinea was 16.6% in 2024, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest transport services recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 70.2% in 1978.
- What is the lowest transport services recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.5% in 2018.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for transport services?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 171st out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is transport services rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Transport services (% of commercial service imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Transport is the process of carriage of people and objects from one location to another as well as related supporting and auxiliary services. Also included are postal and courier services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are commercial services provided by non-residents to residents.