Located in West Africa bordered to its east by Nigeria and to its west by Togo, the Republic of Benin shipped US$1.05 billion worth of exported products around the world in 2023.

That dollar amount results from a 24% gain from $850.7 million 5 years earlier in 2019.

Year over year, the overall value of Benin’s exported products accelerated by -17.2% compared to $899.9 million starting from 2022.

Based on the average exchange rate for 2023, Benin uses the West African CFA franc which depreciated by -3.5% against the US dollar since 2019 but appreciated by 2.6% from 2022 to 2023. Benin’s weaker local currency compared to 2019 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 86.7% of products exported from Benin was bought by importers in: Bangladesh (37.1% of Benin’s global total), India (15.4%), Pakistan (7.2%), Togo (5.5%), mainland China (5.3%), United Arab Emirates (4.3%), Chad (3.5%), Egypt (2.5%), Vietnam (1.7%), Nigeria (1.5%), Malaysia (1.4%) and Ivory Coast (1.3%).

From a continental perspective, 75.1% of Benin’s exports by value was delivered to Asian countries while 19.1% was sold to importers in fellow African countries. Benin shipped another 4.7% worth of goods to buyers in Europe.

Tinier percentages went to customers in North America (1.1%), Latin America (0.03%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania’s Australia (0.0002%).

Given Benin’s population of 13.2 million people, its total $1.05 billion in 2023 exports translates to roughly $80 for every resident in the West African country. That dollar metric surpasses the average $60 per capita one year earlier during 2022.

Benin’s Top 10 Exports

The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Beninese global shipments during 2023. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Benin.

1. Cotton: US$515.7 million (48.9% of total exports)
2. Oil seeds: $132.1 million (12.5%)
3. Fruits, nuts: $116.9 million (11.1%)
4. Food industry waste, animal fodder: $50.6 million (4.8%)
5. Iron, steel: $46.5 million (4.4%)
6. Mineral fuels including oil: $40.8 million (3.9%)
7. Wood: $21.8 million (2.1%)
8. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $21.1 million (2%)
9. Machinery including computers: $20.7 million (2%)
10. Articles of iron or steel: $10.3 million (1%)

Formerly called Dahomey, Benin’s top 10 exports accounted for 92.6% of the overall value of its global shipments.

Fruits and nuts was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 228.7% from 2022 to 2023.

In second place for improving export sales was oil seeds via a 150.6% advance.

Benin’s shipments of machinery including computers posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 132.4%.

The leading decliner among Benin’s top 10 export categories was wood, recording a -20.9% year-over-year drop.

At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level Benin’s most valuable exported products in 2023 were raw cotton (47.9%), cashews and Brazil nuts (10.7%), soya beans (8.7%), processed petroleum oils (3.8%), oil seeds (3.6%), solid residues including soya-bean oil cake (2.5%), miscellaneous oil cakes (1.9%), bars and rods made from uncoiled iron or non-alloy steel (also 1.9%), bars and rods made from coiled iron or non-alloy steel (1.7%), then heavy machinery including bulldozers, excavators and road rollers (1.2%).

Products Generating Benin’s Best Trade Surpluses

The following types of Beninese product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus during 2023. 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$490.4 million (Down by -13.7% since 2022)
2. Oil seeds: $129.7 million (Up by 155.1%)
3. Fruits, nuts: $114.5 million (Up by 238.9%)
4. Food industry waste, animal fodder: $45.3 million (Up by 83.7%)
5. Wood: $15 million (Down by -18.5%)
6. Vegetable plaiting materials: $439,000 (Up by 119.5%)
7. Collector items, art, antiques: $148,000 (Up by 1,544%)
8. Plaiting products, basketware, wickerwork: $6,000 (Reversing a -$7,000 deficit)

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$2.93 billion trade deficit for 2023, flatlining by -1.1% from -$2.96 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2022.

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$688.4 million (Down by -3.3% since 2022)
2. Mineral fuels including oil: -$625.9 million (Down by -7.5%)
3. Machinery including computers: -$269 million (Up by 12.4%)
4. Electrical machinery, equipment: -$254.8 million (Up by 47.1%)
5. Vehicles: -$203.7 million (Up by 17.8%)
6. Pharmaceuticals: -$143.8 million (Down by -13%)
7. Articles of iron or steel: -$142.9 million (Down by -28.1%)
8. Fertilizers: -$136.7 million (Up by 9.3%)
9. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -$132.2 million (Up by 323.6%)
10. Meat: -$124.6 million (Up by 12.6%)

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 1.5% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2023 ($59.8 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 1.5% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2023 compares to 1.9% for 2022. These percentages suggest a relatively decreasing 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 2023 averaged 1.4%, up from an average 1.3% for 2022 based on Trading Economics metrics.

Benin’s capital city is Porto-Novo.

See also Cotton Exports by Country, OPEC Countries Crude Oil Exports Sales Data, Rice Imports by Country and Top Almonds Exporters by Country

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on December 13, 2024

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on December 13, 2024

International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on December 13, 2024

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Databases (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on December 13, 2024

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on December 13, 2024

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on December 13, 2024

Wikipedia, Benin. Accessed on December 13, 2024

Wikipedia, List of Companies of Benin. Accessed on December 13, 2024