Asia ships 43% of the world's goods; Africa under 3%
Original title: Share of global merchandise exports · Our World in Data · 31 Jul 2026
Original chart: Our World in Data
So what
The centre of gravity of goods trade is now Asia, with Europe second largely thanks to intra-EU trade. North America, despite its economic weight, ships only about a tenth of world goods, and Africa and the least developed countries barely register. Developing regions now ship nearly half of global exports, a decisive shift for sourcing and market-entry strategy.
- Data sources
- UNCTAD; WTO; UN SDG database (indicator 17.11.1)
- Authors
- Our World in Data
- Source article
- Not recorded
- Rights
- Third-party rights need checking. The chart is not reproduced here.
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