A country cannot produce every product on its own. Countries like China try to deliver everything on their own, and that is the reason why they stand on top of the list. The exports and imports of a country have a to do with the economy of the country as when the country exports more, more foreign exchange is generated and that in terms strengthens the economy of the country. On the other hand, if the imports of the country are more than its exports, the economy lags.
Stability of Exports and Imports
In addition to that the stability of imports and exports also has a lot to do with the economy as when the export value of goods and the import value of goods is stable, the economy is much more stable and the instability in the ratio caused the formation of an unstable economy which hinders the country from progressing.
Countries With Most Imports
The table below shows the list of top 20 countries that have the highest imports 2017 est:
| Sr. No. | Country | Imports |
| 1 | United States | $2,352 B |
| 2 | European Union | $1,895 B |
| 3 | China | $1,731 B |
| 4 | Germany | $1,104 B |
| 5 | Japan | $625.7 B |
| 6 | France | $624.9 B |
| 7 | United Kingdom | $602.5 B |
| 8 | Hong Kong | $558.6 B |
| 9 | South Korea | $457.5 B |
| 10 | Canada | $443.7 B |
| 11 | Netherlands | $435.4 B |
| 12 | India | $426.8 B |
| 13 | Italy | $426.7 B |
| 14 | Mexico | $417.3 B |
| 15 | Spain | $333.4 B |
| 16 | Singapore | $327.4 B |
| 17 | Belgium | $306.1 B |
| 18 | Switzerland | $286.7 B |
| 19 | Taiwan | $272.6 B |
| 20 | United Arab Emirates | $241.3 B |
The United States With Highest Imports
The United States in on top of the list as it imported goods worth 2.35 trillion US dollar as per the statistics of 2017. But the economy of the United States is much stable. The reason behind that is that the United States also exports a large number of goods. As per the facts and figures of 2017, the United States was third on the list of countries with most exports as it exported products worth 1.57 trillion dollars. The United States imports Electronics, Machinery, Fuel, and Vehicles are the most demanded imports in the United States and the stats of these products are listed below of the year 2017:
| Sr. No. | Category | Value |
| 1 | Electrical and electronic equipment | $356.78 B |
| 2 | Machinery, nuclear reactors, and boilers | $349.11 B |
| 3 | Vehicles other than railway and tramway | $294.59 B |
| 4 | Mineral fuels, oils, and other distillation products | $204.23 B |
| 5 | Pharmaceutical products | $96.43 B |
| 6 | Commodities (not specified) | $91.29 B |
| 7 | Optical, photo, technical and medical apparatus | $86.18 B |
| 8 | Furniture, lighting signs, and prefabricated buildings | $67.23 B |
| 9 | Pearls, precious stones, metals, and coins | $58.92 B |
| 10 | Plastics | $54.88 B |
The United States is also a great exporter of several goods, and it’s in the country with 3rd largest exports. The major exports of the United States include:
- Machinery and computers: US $201.7 billion (13% of total exports)
- Electrical machinery and electrical equipment: $174.2 billion (11.3%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $138 billion (8.9%)
- Aircraft and spacecraft: $131.2 billion (8.5%)
- Vehicles: $130.1 billion (8.4%)
- Optical, technical and other medical apparatus: $83.6 billion (5.4%)
- Plastics and plastic articles: $61.5 billion (4%)
- Gems and precious metals: $60.4 billion (3.9%)
- Pharmaceutical Goods: $45.1 billion (2.9%)
- Organic chemicals: $36.2 billion (2.3%)
European Union with Second Highest Imports ($1,895 B):
European Union is second on the list with imports worth 1.89 trillion dollars in the year 2016. 40% of the total imports of the European Union were Machinery and transport equipment. Adding to that United States, China and European Union are the top 3 players in the global international trades.
Being second on the list of countries with most imports, the European Union is also one of the big players that make the most exports. EU is also second on the list of countries with most exports, and as per the statistics of the year, 2016 EU exported goods worth 1.92 trillion dollars.
The major imports of EU are fuels and crude oil, metals, machinery, vehicles, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other chemicals, precious gemstones, textiles, aircraft, and ships.
China: Third Largest Imports 1.73 Trillion US Dollars:
China stood 3rd on the list. The country needs to buy some goods from other nations. The major imports of China are oil and mineral fuels, soybeans, medical equipment, optical equipment, medical apparatus, integrated circuits, computer components, and electrical equipment. It buys different goods from South Korea, Japan, Germany, United States, and Australia.
The economy of China has progressed rapidly since the 1980s. The 21st century turned out to be pretty beneficial for the country as it crossed Japan and became the Second largest economy of the world. If we look at the exports of the country, it exported goods more than any other country. The imports of China mainly include manufactured products. More than 12% of the total imports of China include integrated circuits, LCDs and Cars.
China also buys some other natural resources from abroad. Crude oil, for example, makes about 12.8% of annual imports of the country — other natural products soybeans, copper and petroleum products.
Leading Export countries Worldwide
The exports of a country are directly connected to the economy of the state. When the exports of a country are increased and the country somehow manages to lower it’s imports, then more foreign exchange is generated and eventually, nothing can start a country from progressing and if we look on the other side of the picture, if the exports of a country are unstable then the economy stays unstable and the country fails to develop a strengthened economy When the exports of the country are lower, a lower amount of foreign exchange is generated which in terms results in a lower capacity of the state to purchase shares in the international market. And on the other hand, if the exports are higher, more foreign exchange is generated in the country which results in a higher purchasing capacity of country in the international market.
Top 20 Largest Exporting Nations
Down below is the table showing ranking of top 20 countries with the highest export as per the studies of year 2017. China was on top of the list and had the most exports having an export value of 2.3 trillion United States Dollars. Back in 2016, United States was on top of the list of countries with highest imports as it had import value of 2.25 trillion dollars.
| Rank | Country | Exports |
| 1 | China | $2,157 B |
| 2 | European Union | $1,929 B |
| 3 | United States | $1,576 B |
| 4 | Germany | $1,401 B |
| 5 | Japan | $683.3 B |
| 6 | South Korea | $577.4 B |
| 7 | France | $551.8 B |
| 8 | Netherlands | $526.4 B |
| 9 | Italy | $499.1 B |
| 10 | Hong Kong | $496.9 B |
| 11 | United Kingdom | $436.5 B |
| 12 | Canada | $433 B |
| 13 | Mexico | $406.5 B |
| 14 | Singapore | $372.9 B |
| 15 | Taiwan | $344.6 B |
| 16 | Russia | $336.8 B |
| 17 | Switzerland | $336.8 B |
| 18 | United Arab Emirates | $314.7 B |
| 19 | Belgium | $309.1 B |
| 20 | Spain | $301.5 B |
China With The Highest Exports
China took the lead and achieved the first rank in the countries with the most exports in the year 2007. The export ratio of China was this huge before if we look back. The export ratio of the country grew rapidly between years 2002 to 2014 and had been increasing ever since.
Increase in Export Value
In 2002, China only exported good having a value of about 327 billion dollars. The number kept increasing and in 2012, the export value of goods that China exported reached about 2 trillion US Dollars. The leading exports in China were as follows:
- Electrical machinery and equipment: US$599 billion
- Machinery and computers: $382.9 billion
- Furniture and others: $89.8 billion
- Clothing and other related accessories: $73.6 billion
- Knitted and crotchet Accessories: $72 billion
- Optical, technical and medical equipment: $70.6 billion
- Plastics and other plastic articles: $70.6 billion
- Vehicles and automobiles: $67.4 billion
- Iron and Steel Products: $57.3 billion
- Toys, game and other related articles: $55.3 billion
European Union Second highest Exports ($1,929 B)
European Union was second on the list of countries that had the second highest exports. As per the statistics of CIA, it exported goods worth 1929 billion US dollars. The majorly sold goods include cars, medication mixes, automobile parts, processed petroleum oils, smartphones and other handheld devices.
