Nicknamed “Old North State” and “Tar Heel State” located in America’s southeastern region, North Carolina shipped US$42.8 billion worth of exported products around the globe in 2024.

That dollar amount results from a 27.9% gain from $33.5 billion back in 2021.

Year over year, the overall value of North Carolinian exports grew by 1.5% compared to $42.2 billion for 2023.

North Carolina ranks among America’s 15 most lucrative exporters by state behind front-runners including Texas, California, Louisiana and New York. The value of North Carolina’s exports equals 2.1% of the United States’ overall exported products for 2024 ($2.067 trillion), same as 2.1% one year earlier.

North Carolina’s exported products represent 5.1% of the state’s total economic output or nominal Gross Domestic Product ($832.7 billion).

The most valuable products shipped from North Carolina include immunological products in doses packaged for retail sale and blood fractions including antisera. Combined, those major commodities generated 15.6% of North Carolina’s total export revenues during 2024 (up from 15% for the prior year).

Given North Carolina’s population of over 11 million people, its total $42.8 billion in 2024 exported goods translates to $3,900 for every resident in the Old North State. That dollar metric equals the average $3,900 per capita in 2023.

North Carolina’s unemployment rate was 3.7% in December 2024, up from 3.6% one year earlier per YCharts.

North Carolina’s Top 10 Exports

The following export products represent the highest dollar value in North Carolina global shipments during 2024. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from North Carolina.

Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.

1. Immunological products in doses packaged for retail: US$4.5 billion (10.4% of North Carolina’s total exports)
2. Antisera, other blood fractions: $2.2 billion (5.2%)
3. Miscellaneous medications in doses packaged for retail: $1.9 billion (4.5%)
4. Civilian aircraft, engines or other parts: $1.5 billion (3.5%)
5. Human medicine vaccines: $927.1 million (2.2%)
6. Chemical woodpulp, soda (coniferous): $796.1 million (1.9%)
7. Compression ignition piston engines: $768.6 million (1.8%)
8. Vaccines, toxins, cultures excluding yeasts: $734.8 million (1.7%)
9. Polypeptide protein, glycoprotein hormones: $646.4 million (1.5%)
10. Tobacco (stemmed or stripped): $537.4 million (1.3%)

North Carolina’s top 10 exports surpassed a third (33.9%) of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.

The fastest-growing goods exported from North Carolina were polypeptide protein, glycoprotein hormones and derivatives (up 183.7% from 2023), miscellaneous medications in doses packaged for retail sales (61%), vaccines, toxins, cultures of micro-organisms excluding yeasts (up 26.2%), then immunological products in doses packaged for retail sale (up 16.1%).

There was a lone declining product category. Those top commodities fell under antisera and other blood fractions (down -6.3%).

More Key Facts about North Carolina’s International Trade

Overall, North Carolina incurred a -US$44.8 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2024. That dollar amount represents an 18.3% expansion from -$37.8 billion in red ink for 2023.

Another way of saying surplus or deficit is positive or negative net exports. In a nutshell, the term “net exports” quantifies the amount by which foreign spending on a state’s goods or services exceeds or lags that same state’s spending on foreign goods or services.

All told, imports into North Carolina amounted to a total cost of $87.6 billion during 2024 up 9.4% year over year.

Below are North Carolina’s top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2024.

1. Immunological products in doses packaged for retail: $13.5 billion (15.4% of North Carolina’s total imports)
2. Digital processing units (individual components): $3.6 billion (4.1%)
3. Medium-sized passenger vehicles: $3 billion (3.4%)
4. Miscellaneous medications in doses packaged for retail: $2.8 billion (3.2%)
5. Vehicles with spark ignition and electric motors: $1.9 billion (2.2%)
6. Turbo-jet and turbo-propeller parts: $1.7 billion (1.9%)
7. Insulated optical fiber cables: $1.4 billion (1.6%)
8. Mixed immunological products not in measured doses: $1.1 billion (1.2%)
9. Adrenal cortical hormones derivatives: $1 billion (1.2%)
10. Cotton knitted or crocheted t-shirts, singlets: $954.3 million (1.1%)

North Carolina has negative net exports in the international trade of components of medicine, automotive, computer and apparel-related items. In turn, these cashflows indicate North Carolina’s competitive disadvantages under these product categories.

North Carolina’s Major Trade Partners

The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchase nearly two-thirds (64.8%) worth of the total value of products exported from North Carolina during 2024.

1. Canada $8.7 billion (20.2% of North Carolina’s total exports)
2. China $5.9 billion (13.8%)
3. Mexico $5 billion (11.7%)
4. France $2 billion (4.7%)
5. Japan $1.2 billion (2.8%)
6. United Kingdom $1.13 billion (2.6%)
7. Spain $1.1 billion (2.6%)
8. Germany $977.4 million (2.3%)
9. Netherlands $955.2 million (2.2%)
10. Denmark $827.2 million (1.9%)

North Carolina’s top trade partners in North America (Canada and Mexico) accounted for nearly one-third (31.9%) of the overall value of exported goods from the state.

That percentage compares with 16.6% for North Carolina’s top customers in Asia (mainland China and Japan), and 16.3% for major importers in Europe (France, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Netherlands and Denmark).

North Carolinian Export Companies

Twenty-one of North Carolina-based corporations rank among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses. Selected examples are shown below.

• Alliance One International (tobacco)
• Coca-Cola Bottling Co. (beverages)
• Curtiss-Wright Corp (motors, generators, instruments, sensors)
• Duke Energy (electricity, natural gas)
• Lowe’s Companies (appliances, home improvement goods)
• Martin Marietta (construction materials)
• Reynolds American, Inc (tobacco)
• Sealed Air Corp (bubble wrap, food packaging)
• SPX Corp (infrastructure equipment, industrial conglomerate)
• VF Corp (footwear, apparel)

Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the international trade-related products or services which each business sells.
 

North Carolina’s capital is Raleigh, nicknamed “City of Oaks”.

See also South Carolina’s Top 10 Exports, New Jersey’s Top 10 Exports, Missouri’s Top 10 Exports, Pennsylvania’s Top 10 Exports and Mississippi’s Top 10 Exports

Research Sources:
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on March 5, 2025

Forbes, 2021 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on March 5, 2025

GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2021 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on March 5, 2025

IBIS World, State Economic Profile (including GDP). Accessed on March 5, 2025

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on March 5, 2025

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on March 5, 2025

United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: North Carolina. Accessed on March 5, 2025

USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on March 5, 2025

Wikipedia, Companies based in North Carolina. Accessed on March 5, 2025

Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on March 5, 2025

Wikipedia, North Carolina. Accessed on March 5, 2025

YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on March 5, 2025