That dollar amount results from a 70.2% acceleration compared to $20.2 billion five years earlier during 2020.
Year over year, the total value of Ecuadorean exports increased by 10.6% from $31.1 billion in 2023.
Note that, since March 9, 2000, Ecuador adopted the US dollar as its legal currency.
Ecuador’s Key Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data shows that more than three-quarters (77%) of products exported from Ecuador was bought by importers in: United States of America (20.4% of the Ecuadorean total), Panama (18.3%), mainland China (14.8%), Netherlands (3.3%), Peru (3.2%), Spain (2.9%), Chile (2.8%), Russia (2.6%), Colombia (2.5%), Germany (2.3%), Italy (2.2%) and Malaysia (1.8%).
From a continental perspective, 24.1% of Ecuador’s exports by value was delivered to Asian countries while 30.3% was sold to importers in Latin America excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean. Ecuador shipped another 22.5% worth of goods to buyers in North America.
Smaller percentages went to customers in Europe (22.1%), Africa (0.8%) then Oceania (0.2%) led by New Zealand and Australia.
Given Ecuador’s population of 18 million people, its total $34.4 billion in 2024 exports translates to about $1,900 for every resident in the South American nation. That per-capita amount exceeds the $1,700 dollar average one year earlier in 2023.
Ecuador’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Ecuadorean global shipments during 2024. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Ecuador.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$9.6 billion (27.8% of total exports)
- Fish: $7.4 billion (21.4%)
- Fruits, nuts: $4.3 billion (12.4%)
- Cocoa: $3.6 billion (10.5%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $24 billion (5.9%)
- Meat/seafood preparations: $1.72 billion (5%)
- Gems, precious metals: $1.7 billion (3.1%)
- Live trees, plants, cut flowers: $1 billion (3%)
- Wood: $580.9 million (1.7%)
- Vegetables: $340.3 million (1%)
Ecuador’s top 10 export product categories generated 91.8% of the overall value of total Ecuadorean shipments.
Cocoa was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 174% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was meat or seafood preparations via a 25.5% advance.
Ecuador’s shipments of vegetables posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 9.8%.
The leading decliner among Ecuador’s top 10 export categories was gems and precious metals, dragged down by a -25.2% year-over-year drop. Gold was a major loser under this product category.
The above insights are presented at the two-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level.
From the more detailed four-digit HTS code perspective, Ecuador’s most valuable exported products are crude oil (25.1% of the Ecuadorean total). In second place was lobsters including other crustaceans (20.3%) trailed by bananas and plantains (11.2%), cocoa beans (9.7%), preserved or prepared fish and caviar (4.9%), copper ores and concentrates (3.4%), unwrought gold (3%), fresh or dried flowers (also 3%), refined petroleum oils (2.7%), then precious metal ores and concentrates (2.5%).
Products Generating Ecuador’s Largest Trade Surpluses
Overall Ecuador recorded a US$4.9 billion trade surplus for 2024, accelerating by 2,037% compared to $230.7 million in black ink one year earlier in 2023.
The following types of Ecuadorean product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. 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.
- Fish: US$7.2 billion (Down by -2% since 2023)
- Fruits, nuts: $4.1 billion (Up by 3.8%)
- Cocoa: $3.6 billion (Up by 181.7%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $2.2 billion (Up by 43.6%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $2 billion (Up by 6%)
- Meat/seafood preparations: $1.7 billion (Up by 25.8%)
- Gems, precious metals: $1 billion (Down by -25.7%)
- Live trees, plants, cut flowers: $999.9 million (Up by 2.7%)
- Wood: $528.4 million (Up by 10.8%)
- Vegetables: $278.7 million (Up by 10.1%)
Ecuador has highly positive net exports under the fish product category.
Products Causing Ecuador’s Worst Trade Deficits
Below are exports from Ecuador that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Ecuador’s goods trail Ecuadorean importer spending on foreign products.
- Machinery including computers: -US$3 billion (Down by -1.5% since 2023)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$2.1 billion (Up by 9.4%)
- Vehicles: -$2.1 billion (Down by -24.7%)
- Food industry waste, animal fodder: -$1.16 billion (Down by -17.2%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$1.16 billion (Down by -10.8%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$1 billion (Down by -1.1%)
- Iron, steel: -$674.1 million (Down by -24.7%)
- Other chemical goods: -$627.2 million (Up by 6.4%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: -$562.6 million (Down by -11.6%)
- Cereals: -$546.3 million (Down by -16.9%)
Ecuador has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for machinery, particularly for computers.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Ecuador’s competitive disadvantages in the international machinery market, but also represent key opportunities for Ecuador to improve its position in the global economy through focused innovations.
Ecuadorean Export Companies
Not one Ecuadorean corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia does list some exporters from Ecuador. Selected examples are shown below.
- Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones–CNT EP (telecommunications)
- Marathon Sports (sport equipment)
- Ecua-Andino Hats (panama hats)
- Tiendas Industriales Asociadas S.A.–Tía S.A. (discount retailer)
- TAME EP Linea Aerea del Ecuador (airliner)
- Zhumir Latin Spirit (liquor)
In macroeconomic terms, Ecuador’s total exported goods represent 11.6% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($296.7 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 11.6% of exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 compares to 12.8% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Ecuador’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Ecuador’s unemployment rate averaged 4.2% for 2024, up from an average 3.38% in 2023 according to International Monetary Fund statistics.
Ecuador’s capital city is Quito.
See also Ecuador’s Top Trading Partners, Ecuador’s Top 10 Imports, Colombia’s Top Trading Partners, Chile’s Top Trading Partners and Argentina’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook South America: Ecuador. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on April 7, 2025
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on April 7, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Wikipedia, Ecuador. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Ecuador. Accessed on April 7, 2025
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on April 7, 2025