The UK is also known for its exports of gold, aircraft components as well as refined petroleum oils.
The following list shows which UK exports attracted the most money in sales during 2017. Unlike most information currently available on the web, the items below are detailed at the 4-digit tariff code level.
This level of granularity can help entrepreneurs identify which products in which the UK has strong competitive advantages over other nations.
For the most recent four-digit HTS code data, please see the Searchable List of UK’s Most Valuable Exports Products section in the United Kingdom’s Top 10 Exports article. For a link to that article, see the See also paragraph above Research Sources below.
Highest Value UK Export Products
Below are the 20 highest value export products shipped from the UK during 2017. Shown within brackets is the year-over-year change in international sales for each item.
- Cars: US$41.8 billion (up 2.6% since 2016)
- Turbo-jets: $25.2 billion (up 30%)
- Medication mixes in dosage: $20.4 billion (down -6.2%)
- Crude oil: $18.8 billion (up 42.6%)
- Gold (unwrought): $17.7 billion (up 14%)
- Aircraft parts: $16.4 billion (up 9.5%)
- Processed petroleum oils: $11.4 billion (up 24.7%)
- Blood fractions (including antisera): $9.7 billion (up 11.2%)
- Alcohol (including spirits, liqueurs): $7.3 billion (up 3.8%)
- Automobile parts/accessories: $6.5 billion (up 2.8%)
- Platinum (unwrought): $5.6 billion (up 33.7%)
- Phone system devices including smartphones: $5.2 billion (up 3.4%)
- Jewelry: $4.7 billion (up 3%)
- Hand-drawn paintings, drawings: $4.3 billion (down -1.3%)
- Aircraft, spacecraft: $4.3 billion (down -21.1%)
- Engines (diesel): $3.9 billion (up 26.8%)
- Computers, optical readers: $3.9 billion (down -5.4%)
- Petroleum gases: $3.6 billion (up 24.8%)
- Taps, valves, similar appliances: $2.9 billion (down -6%)
- Centrifuges, filters and purifiers: $2.9 billion (up 5.5%)
Among these highly lucrative exports, the leading increase in export sales from 2016 to 2017 was a 42.6% gain for crude oil.
In second place were UK’s exports of platinum, ahead in value by 33.7%.
Exported diesel engines rose 26.8% year over year.
See also United Kingdom’s Top Exports and United Kingdom’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on February 17, 2018
The World Factbook, Field Listing: Exports and World Population, Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on February 17, 2018
Trade Map, International Trade Centre, www.intracen.org/marketanalysis. Accessed on February 17, 2018