Ethiopia flag Ethiopia: Economic and Political Overview

Foreign trade figures of Ethiopia

Foreign Trade in Figures

Ethiopia is not fully open to international trade, with a foreign trade-to-GDP ratio of 24% (World Bank, latest data available). It is a member of the IGAD and the COMESA (but has not joined the free trade zone) and has long been in the process of joining the WTO. As part of this process, the government is restructuring the customs tariffs. In order to rationalize investment opportunities, it has introduced lower duties on raw materials and semi-finished products. Ethiopia recently signed the African Continental Free Trade Agreement and created special economic zones offering tax incentives and customs duties exemptions to investors. The country mainly exports vanilla, unwrought nickel, coffee, oilseeds, vegetables, cut flowers, pulses, and meat. The main imported products are petroleum oils, rice, textiles (mostly for re-exports), medicines, wheat, palm oil, vehicles and fertilizers.

According to data by Comtrade, in 2021 Ethiopia’s main customers were Somalia (11.8%), the United States (10.8%), Germany (8%), and the Netherlands (7.5%); whereas its main suppliers were China (26.4%), India (15.7%), the United States (7.6%), Turkey (5%), and Malaysia (4.1%). The peace agreements signed with Eritrea should favour economic relations between the two countries, and the water-sharing agreement concluded with Egypt and Sudan over the Nile River dam will ease the tensions between these neighbouring countries and promote economic relations. However, due to the conflict in the Tigray region and alleged human rights violations, the U.S. removed Ethiopia from the African Growth and Opportunity Act trade program, which is expected to negatively impact trade.
 
Ethiopia's trade balance is structurally in deficit, and this trend will continue due to the country's investment-led economy, which strongly encourages imports. Trade balance also partially depends on weather phenomena, which sometimes forces Ethiopia, a large agricultural producer, to import grains during droughts. In 2021, imports of goods amounted to USD 15.9 billion, whereas exports stood at USD 3.9 billion. In the same year, Ethiopia spent USD 6.6 billion in imports of services while export generated USD 5.5 billion. According to the World Bank, the country’s trade balance was negative by 9.1% of GDP (from 9.8% one year earlier). Figures from the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration show that during the 2021/2022 fiscal year, Ethiopia exported goods worth USD 4.1 billion: of these, the agricultural sector had the highest share (72%), followed by the mining sector (14%) and the industry sector (12%).

 
Foreign Trade Values 20182019202020212022
Imports of Goods (million USD) 15,30514,55413,11515,97318,663
Exports of Goods (million USD) 2,7042,7413,2583,9493,970
Imports of Services (million USD) 6,2036,1715,4086,5267,452
Exports of Services (million USD) 4,9194,8424,4625,5667,001

Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Indicators 20182019202020212022
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) 31.228.824.024.326.6
Trade Balance (million USD) -11,021-10,310-8,509-10,403-12,765
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) -12,305-11,639-9,455-11,363-13,217
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) -6.6-5.3-2.013.3n/a
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 5.4-5.8-5.419.0n/a
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 22.820.916.916.718.3
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 8.47.97.17.68.2

Source: World Bank ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Forecasts 20232024 (e)2025 (e)2026 (e)2027 (e)
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) 7.012.910.3-3.810.2
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) -6.112.25.17.510.6

Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data

Note: (e) Estimated Data

 
International Economic Cooperation
Member of African Union

Member of Common Market for Eastern and Souther Africa (COMESA)

Member of Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)

 

Main Partner Countries

Main Customers
(% of Exports)
2022
United States 10.8%
Saudi Arabia 8.7%
Somalia 8.6%
Germany 8.4%
Netherlands 7.0%
See More Countries 56.5%
Main Suppliers
(% of Imports)
2022
China 30.0%
India 14.3%
United States 6.7%
Türkiye 4.5%
Morocco 4.2%
See More Countries 40.3%

Source: Comtrade, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

 
 

Main Products

3.1 bn USD of products exported in 2022
Coffee, whether or not roasted or decaffeinated;...Coffee, whether or not roasted or decaffeinated; coffee husks and skins; coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion 49.1%
Other vegetables, fresh or chilled (excl. potatoes...Other vegetables, fresh or chilled (excl. potatoes, tomatoes, alliaceous vegetables, edible brassicas, lettuce "Lactuca sativa" and chicory "Cichorium spp.", carrots, turnips, salad beetroot, salsify, celeriac, radishes and similar edible roots, cucumbers and gherkins, and leguminous vegatables) 7.5%
Cut flowers and flower buds of a kind suitable for...Cut flowers and flower buds of a kind suitable for bouquets or for ornamental purposes, fresh, dried, dyed, bleached, impregnated or otherwise prepared 7.4%
Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, whether or...Other oil seeds and oleaginous fruits, whether or not broken (excl. edible nuts, olives, soya beans, groundnuts, copra, linseed, rape or colza seeds and sunflower seeds) 6.8%
Dried leguminous vegetables, shelled, whether or...Dried leguminous vegetables, shelled, whether or not skinned or split 5.6%
See More Products 23.5%
16.5 bn USD of products imported in 2022
Palm oil and its fractions, whether or not refined...Palm oil and its fractions, whether or not refined (excl. chemically modified) 5.4%
Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous...Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals (excl. crude); preparations containing >= 70% by weight of petroleum oils or of oils obtained from bituminous minerals, these oils being the basic constituents of the preparations, n.e.s.; waste oils containing mainly petroleum or bituminous minerals 5.4%
Wheat and meslinWheat and meslin 5.2%
Mineral or chemical fertilisers containing two or...Mineral or chemical fertilisers containing two or three of the fertilising elements nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium; other fertilisers (excl. pure animal or vegetable fertilisers or mineral or chemical nitrogenous, phosphatic or potassic fertilisers); animal, vegetable, mineral or chemical fertilisers in tablets or similar forms or in packages of a gross weight of <= 10 kg 4.7%
Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally...Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, incl. station wagons and racing cars (excl. motor vehicles of heading 8702) 4.5%
See More Products 74.8%

Source: Comtrade, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

 
 

To go further, check out our service Import Export Flows.

 

Main Services

Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

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Latest Update: December 2023