UK overseas trade in goods statistics: March 2021
This section is National Statistics
Find UK overseas trade statistics data detailing international trade in goods at product and summary level.
Summary of trade trends
In March 2021:
- total goods exports were £34.9bn:
- up by £8.0bn (30%) compared with February 2021
- up by £6.4bn (22%) compared with March 2020
- total goods imports were £41.9bn:
- up by £7.0bn (20%) compared with February 2021
- up by £0.4bn (0.9%) compared with March 2020
- the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £7.0bn, narrowing by £1.0bn on February 2021
EU and non-EU trade in goods
EU trade in goods
In March 2021:
- EU exports were £14.6bn:
- up by £2.6bn (22%) compared with February 2021
- up by £1.7bn (14%) compared with March 2020
- EU imports were £20.2bn:
- up by £3.9bn (24%) compared with February 2021
- down by £0.8bn (4.0%) compared with March 2020
- for EU trade, the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £5.7bn
Non-EU trade in goods
In March 2021:
- Non-EU exports were £20.4bn:
- up by £5.4bn (36%) compared with February 2021
- up by £4.6bn (30%) compared with March 2020
- Non-EU imports were £21.6bn:
- up by £3.1bn (17%) compared with February 2021
- up by £1.2bn (6.0%) compared with March 2020
- for non-EU trade, the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £1.3bn
Top trading partners
Top 5 trading partners by combined exports and imports value
|
Country |
Exports value |
Change since February |
Imports value |
Change |
|
Germany |
3.0 |
29.9 |
5.4 |
28.3 |
|
USA |
4.3 |
25.3 |
3.6 |
13.3 |
|
China |
1.6 |
59.7 |
5.4 |
9.1 |
|
Switzerland |
5.7 |
83.5 |
0.9 |
31.1 |
|
Netherlands |
1.9 |
1.5 |
2.6 |
14.7 |
Exports: top 5 trading partners
|
Country |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since February |
|
Switzerland |
5.7 |
83.5 |
|
USA |
4.3 |
25.3 |
|
Germany |
3.0 |
29.9 |
|
Netherlands |
1.9 |
1.5 |
|
Republic of Ireland |
1.9 |
44.3 |
Imports: top 5 trading partners
|
Country |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since February |
|
China |
5.4 |
9.1 |
|
Germany |
5.4 |
28.3 |
|
USA |
3.6 |
13.3 |
|
Netherlands |
2.6 |
14.7 |
|
Belgium |
1.9 |
22.6 |
Top traded commodities
Top 5 commodities by combined exports and imports value
|
Commodity |
Exports value |
Change since February |
Imports value |
Change since February |
|
Precious metals |
7.6 |
67.1 |
4.4 |
21.3 |
|
Mechanical appliances |
4.5 |
27.5 |
5.5 |
21.2 |
|
Motor vehicles |
3.6 |
22.1 |
4.7 |
36.7 |
|
Electronic equipment |
1.8 |
22.0 |
3.8 |
13.7 |
|
Mineral fuels |
1.7 |
16.4 |
2.6 |
11.4 |
Top 5 exported commodities
|
Commodity |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since February |
|
Precious metals |
7.6 |
67.1 |
|
Mechanical appliances |
4.5 |
27.5 |
|
Motor vehicles |
3.6 |
22.1 |
|
Electronic equipment |
1.8 |
22.0 |
|
Pharmaceutical products |
1.8 |
16.5 |
Top 5 imported commodities
|
Commodity |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since February |
|
Mechanical appliances |
5.5 |
21.2 |
|
Motor vehicles |
4.7 |
36.7 |
|
Precious metals |
4.4 |
21.3 |
|
Electronic equipment |
3.8 |
13.7 |
|
Mineral fuels |
2.6 |
11.4 |
Full commentary
Download the commentary for more details and analysis of this data.
Datasets
Access monthly data for combined EU and non-EU trade.
- UK overseas trade in goods March 2021: import data (XLSX, 28.5 KB)
- UK overseas trade in goods March 2021: export data (XLSX, 28.1 KB)
- Gold trade for March 2021 (XLSX, 36 KB)
- Top 20 traded goods by Chapter: March 2021 (XLSX, 610.4 KB)
- Top 20 traded goods by Standard International Trade Classification: March 2021 (XLSX, 39.2 KB)
- Top 20 trading partners: March 2021 (XLSX, 38.9 KB)
Earlier data
Find earlier overseas trade statistics.
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