Located in West Africa bordered to its east by Nigeria and to its west by Togo, the Republic of Benin shipped US$832.9 million worth of exported products around the world in 2022.

That dollar amount results from a -12.5% fall from $952.1 million 5 years earlier in 2018.

Year over year, the overall value of Benin’s exported products dropped by -18.8% compared to $1.03 billion for 2021.

Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, Benin uses the West African CFA franc which depreciated by -12.3% against the US dollar since 2018 and diluted by -12.5% from 2021 to 2022. Benin’s weaker local currency makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.

Benin’s Major Trading Partners

The latest available country-specific data shows that 87.0% of products exported from Benin was bought by importers in: Bangladesh (44.5% of the Beninese total), India (12.1%), mainland China (6.4%), Pakistan (4.5%), Egypt (4.3%), Togo (4.1%), Chad (3.3%), Vietnam (2.3%), Nigeria (1.55%), Ukraine (1.48%), Denmark (1.32%) and Niger (1.26%).

From a continental perspective, 73.1% of Benin’s exports by value was delivered to Asian countries while 20.5% was sold to importers in fellow African countries. Benin shipped another 6% worth of goods to Europe.

Tinier percentages went to buyers in North America (0.3%), Latin America (0.03%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, and Oceania’s Norfolk Island (0.005%).

Given Benin’s population of 13.4 million people, its total $832.9 million in 2022 exports translates to roughly $60 for every resident in the West African country. That dollar metric falls below the average $80 per capita one year earlier during 2021.

Benin’s Top 10 Exports

The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Beninese global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Benin.

1. Cotton: US$543.3 million (65.2% of total exports)
2. Oil seeds: $51.2 million (6.1%)
3. Iron, steel: $39 million (4.7%)
4. Mineral fuels including oil: $35.1 million (4.2%)
5. Fruits, nuts: $32.6 million (3.9%)
6. Food industry waste, animal fodder: $28.2 million (3.4%)
7. Wood: $25.9 million (3.1%)
8. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $16.9 million (2%)
9. Machinery including computers: $8.4 million (1%)
10. Articles of iron or steel: $6.3 million (0.8%)

Formerly called Dahomey, Benin’s top 10 exports accounted for 94.5% of the overall value of its global shipments.

Oil seeds represents the lone grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 0.6% from 2021 to 2022.

The leading decliner among Benin’s top 10 export categories were articles made from iron or steel, dragged down by a -51.7% year-over-year drop.

At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level Benin’s most valuable exported products in 2022 were raw cotton (64%), oil seeds (5.1%), processed petroleum oils (4.2%), cashews and Brazil nuts (3.7%), miscellaneous oil cakes (3.3%), sawn wood (1.6%), bars and rods made from uncoiled iron or non-alloy steel (1.5%), sunflower or safflower seed and cotton-seed oils (1.4%), woven cotton fabrics (1.1%), then bars and rods made from coiled iron or non-alloy steel (also 1.1%).

Products Generating Benin’s Best Trade Surpluses

The following types of Beninese product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus during 2022. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.

In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.

1. Cotton: US$520.9 million (Down by -15% since 2021)
2. Oil seeds: $49.3 million (Up by 2.6%)
3. Fruits, nuts: $30.9 million (Down by -39.4%)
4. Food industry waste, animal fodder: $23.5 million (Down by -13.9%)
5. Wood: $18.3 million (Down by -29.2%)
6. Gems, precious metals: $1.3 million (Down by -91.3%)
7. Vegetable plaiting materials: $187,000 (Down by -22.7%)
8. Aircraft, spacecraft: $25,000 (Reversing a -$12,000 deficit)
9. Collector items, art, antiques: $8,000 (Down by -98.2%)

Benin has highly positive net exports in the international trade of cotton. In turn, these cashflows indicate Benin’s strong competitive advantages under the related product category.

Products Causing Benin’s Worst Trade Deficits

Overall, Benin incurred a -US$2.5 billion trade deficit for 2022, increasing by 5.1% from -$2.4 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2021.

Below are exports from Benin that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Benin’s goods trail Beninese importer spending on foreign products.

1. Cereals: -US$673.6 million (Up by 1.1% since 2021)
2. Mineral fuels including oil: -$520.5 million (Up by 12.1%)
3. Machinery including computers: -$181.3 million (Up by 8.5%)
4. Vehicles: -$162.6 million (Down by -43%)
5. Pharmaceuticals: -$152.9 million (Down by -1.7%)
6. Iron, steel: -$148.4 million (Up by 55.3%)
7. Electrical machinery, equipment: -$141 million (Down by -20.7%)
8. Articles of iron or steel: -$129.7 million (Up by 87.9%)
9. Fertilizers: -$123.9 million (Up by 47.5%)
10. Meat: -$104 million (Down by -4.8%)

Benin has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the cereals and mineral fuels including oil product categories. The cereals deficit was mostly for rice and, to a lesser extent, wheat and corn.

Beninese Export Companies

Not surprising for a small African nation, no Beninese corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.

Wikipedia does list some exports-related companies from Benin. Selected examples are shown below.

• Compagnie Béninoise de Négoce et de Distribution (personal/household goods)
• COTAIR (airliner)
• Société Beninoise de Gaz (natural gas)
• Société Nationale de Commercialisation des Produits Pétroliers (oil, gas)

 
In macroeconomic terms, Benin’s total exported goods represent 1.9% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($54.04 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 1.9% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 1.8% for 2021. These percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Benin’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.

One lagging indicator of an economy’s health is its unemployment rate. Benin’s jobless rate in 2022 averaged 1.7%, down from an average 1.8% for 2021.

Benin’s capital city is Porto-Novo.

See also Cotton Exports by Country, OPEC Countries Crude Oil Exports Sales Data, Rice Imports by Country, Top Almonds Exporters by Country and Capital Facts for Porto-Novo, Benin

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on June 28, 2023

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on June 28, 2023

International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on June 28, 2023

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Databases (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on June 28, 2023

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on June 28, 2023

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on June 28, 2023

Wikipedia, Benin. Accessed on June 28, 2023

Wikipedia, List of Companies of Benin. Accessed on June 28, 2023