The overall value of imports into the United States provided by its Asian competitor dropped by an average -22.2% year over year from 2022 when America’s purchases from Chinese suppliers were valued at $575.7 billion.
On the other hand, the US exported $147.8 billion worth of products to China in 2023. That dollar amount equals about one-third (33%) compared to America’s total spending on all commodities imported from China, declining by -3.9% dip from 2022.
Consequently, America incurred a -$300.2 billion deficit trading goods with China during 2023.
Showcased below are the 100 most valuable imported and exported products exchanged by the United States and China during 2023.
This research is based on statistics using detailed four-digit Harmonized Tariff System codes.
Information in this article is presented in two searchable document databases for the top 100 products traded between the two North American countries.
Top US Imports from China
The following document database highlights the 100 most valuable goods that America imported from China in 2023.
| Products | US$ | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phone devices including smarpthones | $55,216,749,000 | -14.3% |
| 2 | Computers, optical readers | $39,640,518,000 | -28.9% |
| 3 | Electric storage batteries | $15,840,738,000 | +45% |
| 4 | Models, puzzles, miscellaneous toys | $13,026,290,000 | -26.8% |
| 5 | Table games, bowling equipment | $10,869,339,000 | -11.9% |
| 6 | Automobile parts/accessories | $9,918,737,000 | -14.8% |
| 7 | Seats (excluding barber/dentist chairs) | $7,355,151,000 | -34.2% |
| 8 | TV receivers/monitors/projectors | $6,807,371,000 | -29% |
| 9 | Computer parts, accessories | $6,582,724,000 | -7.8% |
| 10 | Electric water heaters, hair dryers | $6,411,152,000 | -13.1% |
| 11 | Miscellaneous furniture | $6,402,660,000 | -31.3% |
| 12 | Miscellaneous plastic items | $6,350,176,000 | -19.7% |
| 13 | Plastic tableware, kitchenware, toiletry | $6,231,750,000 | -16.9% |
| 14 | Microphones/headphones/amps | $5,361,385,000 | -14.3% |
| 15 | Carnival items, magic tricks | $4,798,376,000 | -13.6% |
| 16 | Medication mixes in dosage | $4,473,279,000 | -38.5% |
| 17 | Electrical converters/power units | $4,271,683,000 | -18.9% |
| 18 | Sports equipment | $4,233,086,000 | -32.1% |
| 19 | Lamps, lighting, illuminated signs | $3,724,285,000 | -33.2% |
| 20 | Miscellaneous articles, dress patterns | $3,593,301,000 | -25.9% |
| 21 | Footwear (rubber or plastic) | $3,578,356,000 | -24.8% |
| 22 | Taps, valves, similar appliances | $3,512,865,000 | -20.4% |
| 23 | Air or vacuum pumps | $3,396,704,000 | -25.3% |
| 24 | Insulated wire/cable | $3,371,853,000 | -18.6% |
| 25 | Cases, handbags, wallets | $2,860,673,000 | -23.7% |
| 26 | Base metal mountings, fittings | $2,837,398,000 | -29.5% |
| 27 | Air conditioners | $2,794,151,000 | -20.5% |
| 28 | Footwear (textile) | $2,786,305,000 | -39.9% |
| 29 | Iron and steel tables, household items | $2,784,471,000 | -20.6% |
| 30 | Footwear (leather) | $2,601,503,000 | -34.2% |
| 31 | Cars | $2,539,388,000 | -0.5% |
| 32 | Jerseys, pullovers (knit or crochet) | $2,512,023,000 | -26% |
| 33 | Refrigerators, freezers | $2,500,014,000 | -26.1% |
| 34 | Pneumatic hand tool | $2,399,003,000 | -34.7% |
| 35 | Electromechanic domestic appliances | $2,378,274,000 | -14.9% |
| 36 | Lower-voltage switches, fuses | $2,271,416,000 | -23.7% |
| 37 | Women's clothing (not knit or crochet) | $2,262,473,000 | -17.2% |
| 38 | TV receiver/transmit/digital cameras | $2,259,607,000 | -36.8% |
| 39 | Machinery parts | $2,240,551,000 | -21% |
| 40 | Electro-medical equip (e.g. xrays) | $2,238,236,000 | -16.2% |
| 41 | Mattresses, quilts | $2,206,508,000 | -22.4% |
| 42 | Plastic tile or roll coverings | $2,173,406,000 | -40.3% |
| 43 | Electrical machinery | $2,137,934,000 | -31.1% |
| 44 | Liquid pumps and elevators | $2,103,636,000 | -11.9% |
| 45 | Iron and steel stoves, barbecues | $2,089,937,000 | -35.1% |
| 46 | Plastic packing goods, lids, caps | $1,998,967,000 | -24.2% |
| 47 | Filament/discharge lamps | $1,970,407,000 | -20.4% |
| 48 | Linens | $1,941,804,000 | -18.7% |
| 49 | Mechano-therapy appliances | $1,914,013,000 | -25.4% |
| 50 | Printing machinery | $1,910,625,000 | -29.2% |
| 51 | Miscellaneous iron or steel items | $1,859,332,000 | -26.4% |
| 52 | Integrated circuits/microassemblies | $1,845,664,000 | -29.4% |
| 53 | Electric motors, generators | $1,813,681,000 | -13.4% |
| 54 | Centrifuges, filters and purifiers | $1,618,658,000 | -13.8% |
| 55 | Transmission shafts, gears, clutches | $1,450,322,000 | -24.2% |
| 56 | Electrical/optical circuit boards, panels | $1,413,705,000 | -14.5% |
| 57 | Blankets, travel rugs | $1,377,337,000 | -17.5% |
| 58 | Vacuum containers (excluding glass inners) | $1,315,856,000 | -4.3% |
| 59 | Piston engine parts | $1,311,435,000 | -16.1% |
| 60 | Stockings, hosiery (knit or crochet) | $1,290,820,000 | -21.1% |
| 61 | Heterocyclics, nucleic acids | $1,256,424,000 | -42.8% |
| 62 | Brooms, brushes | $1,239,185,000 | -18.8% |
| 63 | Trailers | $1,212,432,000 | -27.4% |
| 64 | Women's clothing (knit or crochet) | $1,193,838,000 | -25.7% |
| 65 | Vacuum cleaners | $1,192,407,000 | -32% |
| 66 | Iron and steel screws, bolts, nuts, washers | $1,185,199,000 | -35.9% |
| 67 | Miscellaneous machinery | $1,160,737,000 | -16.9% |
| 68 | Motorcycles | $1,072,141,000 | -19.7% |
| 69 | Women's underwear, pajamas (knit or crochet) | $1,066,794,000 | -31.8% |
| 70 | Household aluminum items | $1,061,264,000 | -22.4% |
| 71 | Orthopedic appliances | $1,034,206,000 | -2.1% |
| 72 | Spectacles, goggles | $1,028,052,000 | -12.8% |
| 73 | Fish fillets, pieces | $1,025,477,000 | -24.6% |
| 74 | Artificial flowers, foliage and fruit | $1,008,614,000 | -37.9% |
| 75 | Miscellaneous iron and steel structures | $999,683,000 | -19.9% |
| 76 | Temperature-change machines | $972,626,000 | -8.4% |
| 77 | Rubber tires (new) | $927,892,000 | -37.9% |
| 78 | Garments from special fabric (not knit or crochet) | $885,702,000 | -15.2% |
| 79 | Miscellaneous footwear | $884,131,000 | -23.3% |
| 80 | Human hair wigs, beards, eyebrows , eyelashes | $883,073,000 | -29.2% |
| 81 | Non-electric base metal bells, gongs | $878,423,000 | -22.5% |
| 82 | Ceramic household items | $865,931,000 | -30.5% |
| 83 | Paper containers, cellulose wadding | $862,359,000 | -22.9% |
| 84 | Radar, radio communication items | $859,329,000 | +0.4% |
| 85 | Heavy machinery (bulldozers, excavators) | $837,962,000 | +21.1% |
| 86 | Provitamins, vitamins | $832,237,000 | -17.4% |
| 87 | Spray/dispersing mechanical appliances | $825,508,000 | -26.8% |
| 88 | Portable electric lamps | $820,921,000 | -20.9% |
| 89 | Men's suits, trousers (not knit or crochet) | $815,543,000 | -22.7% |
| 90 | Miscellaneous/adhesive paper | $812,286,000 | -17.7% |
| 91 | Specially designed containers | $809,519,000 | -45.4% |
| 92 | Fork-lift trucks | $805,395,000 | +2.3% |
| 93 | Processed animal or vegetable fats, oils | $794,965,000 | +56887% |
| 94 | Miscellaneous engines, motors | $790,225,000 | -15.6% |
| 95 | Knitted or crocheted textile headgear | $789,012,000 | -30.9% |
| 96 | Miscellaneous heterocyclics | $788,350,000 | -33.1% |
| 97 | Glassware | $786,517,000 | -20.9% |
| 98 | Printed circuits | $777,433,000 | -19.2% |
| 99 | Vulcanized rubber items | $770,793,000 | -21.6% |
| 100 | Sound recording orreproducing apparatus | $759,065,000 | -16% |
These 100 import products attracted US$348.5 billion in American spending in 2023 or almost four-fifths (77.8%) of total US spending on imports from China.
By dollar value, imports into the United States from China equaled 14.1% of overall US imports from around the world in 2023.
The only growing US imports from China from 2022 to 2023 were processed animal or vegetable fats and oils (up 56,887%), electric storage batteries (up 45%), heavy machinery such as bulldozers, excavators and road rollers (up 21.1%), fork-lift trucks (up 2.3%) then radar and radio communication items (up 0.4%).
Decliners impacting America’s spending on imported goods from China the most were led by Chinese-shipped specially designed containers (down -45.4% from 2022), heterocyclics and nucleic acids (down -42.8%), plastic tile or roll coverings (down -40.3%), textile footwear (down -39.9%), medication mixes in dosage (down -38.5%) then new rubber tires (down -37.9%).
Top US Exports to China
The following document database focuses on the 100 leading products that American exporters sold to buyers located in China during 2023.
| Products | US$ | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soya beans | $15,163,713,000 | -15.2% |
| 2 | Crude oil | $13,107,151,000 | +88% |
| 3 | Cars | $6,251,029,000 | +14.3% |
| 4 | Blood fractions (including antisera) | $5,415,426,000 | -9% |
| 5 | Integrated circuits/microassemblies | $5,134,039,000 | -45.5% |
| 6 | Petroleum gases | $4,517,382,000 | +12.9% |
| 7 | Machinery for making semi-conductors | $4,406,698,000 | -14% |
| 8 | Medication mixes in dosage | $3,918,528,000 | +39.5% |
| 9 | Electro-medical equip (e.g. xrays) | $3,657,246,000 | -2.8% |
| 10 | Ethylene polymers | $2,848,395,000 | +68.9% |
| 11 | Copper waste, scrap | $2,099,656,000 | +7.5% |
| 12 | Acyclic hydrocarbons | $1,780,012,000 | +34.7% |
| 13 | Physical/chemical analysis tools | $1,764,358,000 | +3.7% |
| 14 | Corn | $1,656,987,000 | -68.5% |
| 15 | Cotton (uncarded, uncombed) | $1,566,601,000 | -46% |
| 16 | Automobile parts/accessories | $1,485,303,000 | -3.6% |
| 17 | Other diagnostic/lab reagents | $1,360,408,000 | -6.2% |
| 18 | Chemical woodpulp (non-dissolving) | $1,280,094,000 | -3% |
| 19 | Frozen beef | $1,202,336,000 | -29.7% |
| 20 | Sorghum grain | $1,187,326,000 | -35.1% |
| 21 | Other measuring/testing machines | $1,162,422,000 | +29.8% |
| 22 | Computers, optical readers | $1,109,766,000 | +0.7% |
| 23 | Coal, solid fuels made from coal | $1,094,406,000 | +34.3% |
| 24 | Centrifuges, filters and purifiers | $1,043,874,000 | -17.1% |
| 25 | Miscellaneous nuts | $1,016,682,000 | +74% |
| 26 | Oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers | $933,441,000 | +5% |
| 27 | Orthopedic appliances | $895,423,000 | +13.3% |
| 28 | Solar power diodes/semi-conductors | $874,537,000 | +6% |
| 29 | Taps, valves, similar appliances | $855,174,000 | -4.1% |
| 30 | Phone devices including smarpthones | $846,000,000 | +9.9% |
| 31 | Petroleum oil residues | $821,215,000 | -45.1% |
| 32 | Polyacetal/ether/carbonates | $790,537,000 | -25.2% |
| 33 | X-ray equipment | $777,758,000 | +7.8% |
| 34 | Platinum (unwrought) | $741,292,000 | -58.3% |
| 35 | Red meat offal | $737,052,000 | -1.2% |
| 36 | Rough wood | $727,618,000 | -2.7% |
| 37 | Sawn wood | $722,647,000 | -16.9% |
| 38 | Jewelry | $707,639,000 | +61.8% |
| 39 | Poultry meat | $702,836,000 | -36% |
| 40 | Acyclic alcohols | $683,244,000 | +19.7% |
| 41 | Miscellaneous animal feed preparations | $592,858,000 | +19.5% |
| 42 | Transmission shafts, gears, clutches | $568,457,000 | +7.2% |
| 43 | Beauty/makeup/skin care preparations | $565,398,000 | -14.7% |
| 44 | Lower-voltage switches, fuses | $554,829,000 | -17.7% |
| 45 | Miscellaneous plastic items | $515,724,000 | -12% |
| 46 | Bovine/equine rawhides, skins | $508,355,000 | +2% |
| 47 | Computer parts, accessories | $503,058,000 | -29.8% |
| 48 | Electrical/optical circuit boards, panels | $499,008,000 | +0.9% |
| 49 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $488,514,000 | -10.4% |
| 50 | Liquid pumps and elevators | $477,318,000 | -13.1% |
| 51 | Chemical industry products/residuals | $474,795,000 | -20.6% |
| 52 | Initiators/accelerators, catalytic preps | $473,642,000 | -27% |
| 53 | Hay, alfalfa, clover | $438,971,000 | -44.3% |
| 54 | Engines (diesel) | $437,769,000 | +13.4% |
| 55 | Copper ores, concentrates | $429,416,000 | -12% |
| 56 | Whole fish (frozen) | $420,775,000 | -17.2% |
| 57 | Sutures, special pharmaceutical goods | $413,769,000 | +7% |
| 58 | Insulated wire/cable | $404,259,000 | +2.1% |
| 59 | Optical fiber cables, sheets, plates | $401,953,000 | -13.3% |
| 60 | Wheat | $393,888,000 | -0.3% |
| 61 | Liquid/gas checking instruments | $393,800,000 | +7.5% |
| 62 | Inedible meat flour | $392,648,000 | +91.6% |
| 63 | Swine meat | $386,500,000 | -25.5% |
| 64 | Harvest/threshing machinery | $377,840,000 | +35.2% |
| 65 | Miscellaneous machinery | $377,705,000 | -26.1% |
| 66 | Electrical converters/power units | $370,451,000 | -7.1% |
| 67 | Diamonds (unmounted/unset) | $358,018,000 | +164.5% |
| 68 | Self-adhesive plastic in rolls | $343,219,000 | -20.9% |
| 69 | Other food preparations | $338,368,000 | -1.2% |
| 70 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $337,144,000 | -5.2% |
| 71 | Photographic film in rolls, unexposed | $333,060,000 | -12.5% |
| 72 | Unrecorded sound media | $330,382,000 | -41.4% |
| 73 | Crustaceans (including lobsters) | $327,354,000 | +34.3% |
| 74 | Rare-earth metal compounds | $318,534,000 | -38.4% |
| 75 | Electrical machinery | $315,421,000 | +2% |
| 76 | Air or vacuum pumps | $296,730,000 | +19.6% |
| 77 | Liquid crystal/laser/optical tools | $294,924,000 | +2.1% |
| 78 | Fresh or chilled beef | $293,728,000 | +12.4% |
| 79 | Trucks | $292,901,000 | +67.8% |
| 80 | Uncoated kraft paper | $291,474,000 | -8.5% |
| 81 | Cellulose/chemical derivatives | $289,229,000 | -3.1% |
| 82 | Natural sands | $285,934,000 | +111.5% |
| 83 | Iron/steel screws, bolts, nuts, washers | $275,380,000 | +19.3% |
| 84 | Bars, rods, wire | $274,882,000 | +24.9% |
| 85 | Lead ores, concentrates | $271,845,000 | +6% |
| 86 | Chemical woodpulp (dissolving) | $269,222,000 | -24.6% |
| 87 | Electric circuit parts, fuses, switches | $269,135,000 | +14% |
| 88 | Electric motors, generators | $256,112,000 | +6.2% |
| 89 | Printing machinery | $255,258,000 | -2.3% |
| 90 | Vinyl chloride polymers | $243,664,000 | -1.8% |
| 91 | Regulate/control instruments | $240,248,000 | -21.9% |
| 92 | Table games, bowling equipment | $240,101,000 | +649.2% |
| 93 | Temperature-change machines | $239,554,000 | -13.2% |
| 94 | Chemicals used in electronics | $236,223,000 | +13.9% |
| 95 | Polyamides | $235,405,000 | -25% |
| 96 | Unmanufactured tobacco, waste | $226,820,000 | +27.6% |
| 97 | Animal guts, bladders, stomachs | $226,787,000 | -16.2% |
| 98 | Miscellaneous preserved fruits | $226,201,000 | -20% |
| 99 | Provitamins, vitamins | $225,381,000 | +0.4% |
| 100 | Carbon-fiber articles | $219,423,000 | -0.6% |
The itemized 100 US export products represent US$118.4 billion in American sales to China in 2023 or four-fifths (80.1%) of total US exports into China.
Exports from the United States to China equaled 7.3% of all US exported products sold around the world in 2023.
The greatest increases among the top 100 US exports into China from 2022 to 2023 arose from sales of table games or bowling equipment (up 649.2%), unmounted or unset diamonds (up 164.5%), natural sands (up 111.5%), inedible meat flour (up 91.6%) then crude oil (up 88%).
The severest setbacks among America’s sales of exported goods to China were declines in Chinese spending on imports of US corn (down -68.5% from 2022), unwrought platinum (down -58.3%), uncarded and uncombed cotton (down -46%), electronic integrated circuits or microassemblies (down -45.5%), petroleum oil residues (down -45.1%) then hay, alfalfa and clover (down -44.3%).
See also China’s Top Exports, United States Top Exports, China’s Top Imports and United States Top Imports
Research Sources:
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on December 1, 2024
Trade Map, International Trade Centre. Accessed on December 1, 2024