UK overseas trade in goods statistics: December 2024
This section is Statistical release
Find UK overseas trade statistics data detailing international trade in goods at product and summary level.
Summary of trade trends
In December 2024:
total goods exports were £36.3 billion:
- down by £2.2 billion or 5.7% compared with November 2024
- up by £7.2 billion or 25% compared with December 2023
total goods imports were £51.7 billion:
- down by £6.9 billion or 12% compared with November 2024
- up by £1.3 billion or 2.7% compared with December 2023
the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £15.4 billion, decreasing by £4.7 billion on November 2024
EU and non-EU trade in goods
EU trade in goods
In December 2024:
EU exports were £12.8 billion:
- down by £2.1 billion or 14% compared with November 2024
- down by £1.2 billion or 8.8% compared with December 2023
EU imports were £24.2 billion:
- down by £3.7 billion or 13% compared with November 2024
- down by £1.4 billion or 5.4% compared with December 2023
for EU trade, the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £11.4 billion
Non-EU trade in goods
In December 2024:
Non-EU exports were £23.5 billion:
- down by £0.1 billion or 0.3% compared with November 2024
- up by £8.4 billion or 56% compared with December 2023
Non-EU imports were £27.5 billion:
- down by £3.2 billion or 10% compared with November 2024
- up by £2.7 billion or 11% compared with December 2023
for non-EU trade, the UK was a net importer, with imports exceeding exports by £4.0 billion
Top trading partners
Top 5 trading partners by combined exports and imports value
Country |
Exports value |
Change since |
Imports |
Change |
USA |
6.2 |
18.5 |
6.1 |
33.4 |
China |
4.1 |
-1.4 |
4.7 |
-27.4 |
Germany |
2.3 |
-19.5 |
5.5 |
-18.2 |
Netherlands |
1.9 |
-8.1 |
3.4 |
-17.5 |
Switzerland |
4.0 |
-14.2 |
0.9 |
-30.1 |
Exports: top 5 trading partners
Country |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since |
USA |
6.2 |
18.5 |
China |
4.1 |
-1.4 |
Switzerland |
4.0 |
-14.2 |
Germany |
2.3 |
-19.5 |
Netherlands |
1.9 |
-8.1 |
Imports: top 5 trading partners
Country |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since |
USA |
6.1 |
33.4 |
Germany |
5.5 |
-18.2 |
China |
4.7 |
-27.4 |
Netherlands |
3.4 |
-17.5 |
France |
2.6 |
-8.2 |
Top traded commodities
Top 5 commodities by combined exports and imports value
Commodity |
Exports value |
Change since |
Imports |
Change since November 2024 (%) |
Precious metals |
10.0 |
-2.0 |
7.2 |
-8.6 |
Mechanical appliances |
5.0 |
-12.8 |
5.7 |
-11.2 |
Motor vehicles |
3.0 |
-9.7 |
4.9 |
-22.1 |
Mineral fuels |
1.8 |
-5.0 |
6.0 |
8.8 |
Electronic equipment |
1.9 |
-10.7 |
4.4 |
-23.5 |
Top 5 exported commodities
Commodity |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since |
Precious metals |
10.0 |
-2.0 |
Mechanical appliances |
5.0 |
-12.8 |
Motor vehicles |
3.0 |
-9.7 |
Electronic equipment |
1.9 |
-10.7 |
Mineral fuels |
1.8 |
-5.0 |
Top 5 imported commodities
Commodity |
Value (£ billion) |
Change since |
Precious metals |
7.2 |
-8.6 |
Mineral fuels |
6.0 |
8.8 |
Mechanical appliances |
5.7 |
-11.2 |
Motor vehicles |
4.9 |
-22.1 |
Electronic equipment |
4.4 |
-23.5 |
Full commentary
Visit GOV.UK for more details and analysis of December 2024 data.
Datasets
Access monthly data for combined EU and non-EU trade.
- UK overseas trade in goods December 2024: import data (XLSX, 35.1 KB)
- UK overseas trade in goods December 2024: export data (XLSX, 38.8 KB)
- Gold trade for December 2024 (XLSX, 55.9 KB)
- Top 20 traded goods by Chapter: December 2024 (XLSX, 27.3 KB)
- Top 20 traded goods by Standard International Trade Classification: December 2024 (XLSX, 26.7 KB)
- Top 25 trading partners: December 2024 (XLSX, 29.1 KB)
Earlier data
Find earlier overseas trade statistics.
Get help with using data
Read our detailed guide to using data to:
- learn more about this data and our data sources
- understand key terms and definitions
- find out about methods we use to produce statistics