That dollar amount results from a 30.7% increase from $1.96 billion five years earlier during 2020.
Year over year, the overall value of goods exported from Madagascar skidded by -20.8% compared to $3.23 billion in 2023.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2024, the Malagasy ariary depreciated by -2.3% against the US dollar from December 31, 2023 to December 31, 2024. Madagascar’s weaker local currency made its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers starting from American currency.
Best Customers for Madagascar’s Exports
The latest available country-specific data shows that 83.4% of products exported from Madagascar was bought by importers in: France (17.8% of the Malagasy total), United States of America (15.4%), mainland China (10.5%), South Korea (7.2%), Japan (6.9%), India (6.3%), Netherlands (5.4%), Canada (3.7%), South Africa (3.69%), Germany (3%), Indonesia (2.2%) and Spain (1.4%).
From a continental perspective, 38.7% of Madagascar exports by value was delivered to Asian countries while 33.7% was sold to importers in Europe. Madagascar shipped another 19.4% worth of goods to buyers in North America.
Smaller percentages went to customers in Africa (7.8%), Latin America (0.21%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania (0.17%) led by Australia.
Given Madagascar’s population of 30.6 million people, its total $2.56 billion in 2024 exports translates to roughly $85 for every resident in the East African island. That per-capita amount lags the average $110 one year earlier in 2023.
Madagascar’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Malagasy global shipments during 2024 at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Madagascar.
- Nickel: US$463.2 million (18.1% of total exports)
- Coffee, tea, spices: $448.4 million (17.5%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $273.5 million (10.7%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $238 million (9.3%)
- Knit or crochet clothing, accessories: $220.5 million (8.6%)
- Fish: $104.2 million (4.1%)
- Gems, precious metals: $88.2 million (3.4%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $76.7 million (3%)
- Perfumes, cosmetics: $75 million (2.9%)
- Cocoa: $74.8 million (2.9%)
Madagascar’s top 10 export product categories accounted for 80.7% of the overall value of total Malagasy shipments.
Cocoa was the fastest-growing among the top 10 export categories, up by 133.4% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was perfumes and cosmetics which rose by 81.4%.
Madagascar’s shipments of unknitted nor non-crocheted clothing and accessories posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 8.1%.
The leading decliner among Madagascar’s top 10 export categories was gems and precious metals which fell -62.1% year over year, pulled down by falling revenues for exported unstrung precious or semi-precious stones.
The above-listed export products are at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level.
Drilling down to the more detailed 4-digit HTS codes, Madagascar’s most valuable exported goods are unwrought nickel (18.1% of the total), the spice vanilla (9.1%), cloves (6.4%), titanium ores and concentrates (6.2%), unknitted or non-crocheted men’s suits and trousers (4.8%), unstrung precious and semi-precious stones (3.4%), crustaceans including lobsters (3.3%), knitted or crocheted jerseys and pullovers (3.2%), essential oils (2.9%), then cocoa beans (2.7%).
Products Generating Greatest Trade Surpluses for Madagascar
The following types of Malagasy 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.
- Nickel: US$462.9 million (Down by -44.5% since 2023)
- Coffee, tea, spices: $444.1 million (Down by -17.8%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $253.6 million (Up by 6.7%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $237.7 million (Down by -6.8%)
- Knit or crochet clothing, accessories: $208.2 million (Down by -14.8%)
- Gems, precious metals: $87.9 million (Down by -60.3%)
- Fish: $71.8 million (Down by -26.2%)
- Cocoa: $69.7 million (Up by 145.8%)
- Other base metals: $60.2 million (Down by -47%)
- Perfumes, cosmetics: $54.2 million (Up by 128.4%)
Madagascar has highly positive net exports in the international trade of nickel as well as coffee and spices (particularly vanilla). These surplus cashflows indicate Madagascar’s strong competitive advantages under the nickel product category plus the coffee and spices category.
Products Generating Greatest Trade Deficits for Madagascar
Overall Madagascar incurred a -US$2.25 billion trade deficit for 2024, expanding by 41.9% from the -$1.58 billion in red ink during 2023.
Below are exports from Madagascar that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Madagascar’s goods trail Malagasy importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$839.9 million (Down by -11.3% since 2023)
- Machinery including computers: -$344.4 million (Down by -10.4%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$297 million (Up by 8.2%)
- Vehicles: -$281.8 million (Up by 22.5%)
- Cereals: -$223.3 million (Down by -18.6%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -$212.4 million (Up by 8.7%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$192.6 million (Up by 11%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$154.5 million (Up by 9.4%)
- Knit or crochet fabric: -$144.4 million (Up by 11.1%)
- Sugar, sugar confectionery: -$127.9 million (Up by 49.3%)
Madagascar has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for mineral fuels-related products, notably refined petroleum oils.
Madagascar’s Export Companies
Not one Malagasy corporation ranks among the Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists companies based in Madagascar. Selected examples are shown below.
- Air Madagascar (international/domestic airliner)
- Karenjy (automobiles)
- Madacom (telecommunications, internet services)
- Madagascar Oil (oil, gas)
- Madarail (national railways)
In macroeconomic terms, Madagascar’s total exported goods represent 4.2% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($60.9 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 4.2% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 compares to 5.7% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Madagascar’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Madagascar’s unemployment rate averaged 1.9% for 2024, up from the average 1.8% jobless rate in 2023 according to Trading Economics statistics.
Domestically, the average inflation rate for consumer prices in 2024 was 7.439% down from an average 9.861% one year earlier.
Madagascar’s capital city is Antananarivo.
See also Top African Export Countries, Madagascar’s Top 10 Imports, Seychelles Top 10 Exports and Madagascar’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook: Country Profiles. Accessed on April 14, 2025
Currency Stats 247, MGA-USD and USD-MGA exchange rates (at December 31, 2024). Accessed on April 14, 2025
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on April 14, 2025
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on April 14, 2025
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on April 14, 2025
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on April 14, 2025
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Madagascar. Accessed on April 14, 2025
Wikipedia, Madagascar. Accessed on April 14, 2025
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on April 14, 2025