Cobbled together the EU’s overall population is roughly 5 times the UK’s head count.
Nevertheless, the United Kingdom has made significant progress in improving its trade performance versus the 27 remaining EU countries since officially departing from the European Union on January 31, 2020.
This analysis will present key statistics focusing on the UK’s exports to, imports from, and trade balances with the EU by top products.
We’ll start with a performance comparison for each entity’s currency against the United States’ dollar.
Competitive Currency Scorecard
The United Kingdom’s official currency, British pound sterling, depreciated by an average -11.6% based on exchange rates with the US dollar from 2021 to 2022.
On the other hand, the European Union’s euro weakened even more versus the US dollar, depreciating by an average -12.3% compared to its exchange value for 2021.
Oil prices are priced in US dollars. The greater depreciation made related energy products somewhat more expensive for EU importers compared to what UK importers had to pay.
UK’s Top Exports to EU Importers
Overall, the United Kingdom increased its export sales to the European Union to US$232.9 billion 2022, up by 13.4% from 2021.
The list below showcases the most valuable products exported by sellers in the United Kingdom to buyers in European Union countries.
- Crude oil: US$17.9 billion (up 59.3% from 2021)
- Refined petroleum oils: $12.2 billion (up 83.8%)
- Medications: $10.9 billion (up 17.8%)
- Trucks: $10.5 billion (down -7.4%)
- Petroleum gas: $10.3 billion (up 132.6%)
- Turbojets: $9.7 billion (up 16.9%)
- Aircraft or spacecraft parts: $6 billion (2021 data unavailable)
- Heterocyclic compounds with nitrogen: $4.1 billion (up 70%)
- Gold: $4 billion (up 11%)
- Electricity: $3.8 billion (up 425.9%)
- Automotive parts, accessories: $3.1 billion (down -5.2%)
- Computers: $3 billion (up 1.5%)
- Mobile phones: $2.9 billion (up 11.8%)
- Liquor: $2.8 billion (up 7.3%)
- Platinum: $2.6 billion (down -16.8%)
The above 15 products attracted 44.5% of overall UK export revenues collected from EU countries.
The fastest-growing top exports sold by the UK to customers in the EU were electricity (up 425.9% from 2021), petroleum gas (up 132.6%), refined petroleum oils (up 83.6%), heterocyclic compounds with nitrogen (up 70%), then crude oil (up 59.3%).
UK’s Top Imports from EU Exporters
The United Kingdom’s total purchases of goods imported from the European Union equaled US$307.7 billion, flatlining via a 0.1% upturn compared to their total cost in 2021.
Below, you will find the leading products on which UK importers spent the most in 2022. The products are listed in descending order starting with goods that attracted the highest amounts of spending by British importers.
- Cars: US$30.8 billion (up 7.9% from 2021)
- Medications: $11.8 billion (up 10%)
- Refined petroleum oils: $11.7 billion (up 89.9%)
- Automotive parts, accessories: $8.4 billion (down -8.9%)
- Blood: $6.6 billion (down -19.4%)
- Trucks: $5.7 billion (up 10.2%)
- Gold: $5.3 billion (up 99%)
- Wine: $3.6 billion (up 12.7%)
- Bread, pastries, cakes, cookies: $3.3 billion (up 31.5%)
- Computers: $3.2 billion (down -19.4%)
- Turbojets: $2.9 billion (down -24.7%)
- Furniture: $2.8 billion (up 51.3%)
- Electricity: $2.74 billion (down -30.8%)
- Heterocyclic compounds with nitrogen: $2.69 billion (down -24.4%)
- Tractors: $2.65 billion (up 44.7%)
The above products attracted 33.9% of the United Kingdom’s overall spending on all products imported from the EU (compared to the more concentrated 44.5% for UK exports to the EU). The lower percentage suggests that the UK’s top imports are more diversified than Britain’s leading exports sold to the EU.
The strongest percentage gains in UK spending were for imported gold (up 99% from 2021), refined petroleum oils (up 89.9%), furniture (up 51.3%), tractors (up 44.7%), then bread, pastries, cakes and cookies (up 31.5%).
UK’s Trade Balance Scorecard Versus the EU
The United Kingdom’s overall deficit trading with the European Union shrank by -26.6% from -US$101.9 billion in 2021 to -$74.8 billion in red in for 2022.
Listed below are the products that generated the greatest trade surpluses for the UK.
- Crude oil: US$17.9 billion (up 59.4% from 2021)
- Petroleum gas: $9.9 billion (up 208.1%)
- Turbojets: $6.8 billion (up 53.2%)
- Aircraft or spacecraft parts: $4 billion (2021 data unavailable)
- Liquor: $2 billion (up 17.3%)
- Mobile phones: $1.8 billion (reversing a -$154 million deficit)
- Heterocyclic compounds with nitrogen: $1.4 billion (reversing a -$1.2 billion deficit)
- Electricity: $1.1 billion (reversing a -$3.2 billion deficit)
- High-temperature coal tar oils: $1.05 billion (up 1.6%)
- Colloidal precious metals: $1 billion (down -9.5%)
- Raw aluminum: $678.3 million (up 47.2%)
- Iron scrap: $649.7 million (down -11.2%)
- Stainless steel ingots: $636.3 million (up 20.4%)
- Fresh or chilled fish, fish fillets: $595.1 million (up 39.6%)
- Copper scrap: $562.6 million (down -6.6%)
The fastest-growing trade surpluses for the United Kingdom at the expense of its European Union trade partners were for petroleum gas (up 208.1% from 2021), crude oil (up 59.4%), turbojets (up 53.2%), raw aluminum (up 47.2%), then fresh of chilled fish including fish fillets (up 39.6%).
The following commodities caused the severest product deficits for the United Kingdom trading with European Union countries.
- Cars: -US$20.4 billion (up 17.9% from 2021)
- Automotive parts, accessories: -$5.4 billion (down -10.9%)
- Blood: -$4.6 billion (down -22.2%)
- Trucks: -$4.4 billion (up 5.7%)
- Wine: -$3.3 billion (up 12%)
- Bread, pastries, cakes, cookies: -$2.5 billion (up 46.5%)
- Sawn wood: -$2.4 billion (down -15.9%)
- Furniture: -$2.2 billion (up 71.3%)
- Chocolate, cocoa food preparations: -$1.9 billion (up 27.6%)
- Monitors: -$1.8 billion (up 4.4%)
- Poultry meat: -$1.72 billion (up 75.3%)
- Prepared or preserved meat, offal: -$1.66 billion (up 45.5%)
- Tractors: -$1.62 billion (up 57.4%)
- Cheese: -$1.55 billion (up 11.6%)
- Gold: -$1.3 billion (reversing a $928.1 million surplus)
The greatest increase in red ink incurred by the United Kingdom trading with the European Union was for poultry meat including chicken, ducks, geese and turkeys (up 75.3% from 2021).
The second-biggest expansion for UK-EU trade was for furniture thanks to its 71.3% upturn. That product category was trailed by tractors (up 57.4%), bread, pastries, cakes and cookies (up 46.5%), prepared or preserved meat and offal (up 45.5%), chocolate plus cocoa food preparations (up 27.6%), then cars (up 17.9%).
See also United Kingdom’s Top 10 Exports, United Kingdom’s Top 10 Imports and United Kingdom’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on January 10, 2024
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on January 10, 2024
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on January 10, 2024
Richest Country Reports, Key Statistics Powering Global Wealth. Accessed on January 10, 2024
