The global financial crisis will result in an estimated 9.7% drop in world trade during 2009, according to research from Alan S. Alexandroff of the Centre for International Governance Innovation.
A double-digit slowdown in international trade is particularly sobering news on the eve of the Pittsburgh G20 Leaders Summit that lasts from September 24 to 25, 2009.
The G20 comprises a group of finance ministers and central bank governors from 19 of the world’s largest individual economies. The European Union is also a collective G20 member represented by a rotating Council president and the European Central Bank.
The official G20 website claims that its member countries are home to two-thirds of the world population, and generate 80% of global trade.
United States G20 Trade Statistics for 2008
Based on US Census Bureau – Foreign Trade Statistics, American imports from G20 nations rose 7.5% from US$1.397 trillion in 2007 to $1.501 trillion last year. These numbers exclude aggregated European Union trade with the US.
Perhaps due to weakening American currency, US export sales to individual G20 countries experienced an annual percentage increase of 11.6% from $769.1 billion to $858 billion in 2008.
America’s overall trade deficit with its G20 partners was up by a modest 2.4% or $15.3 billion, totaling a still-formidable $643.3 billion for 2008.
US Imports from G20 Countries in 2008
A handful of G20 countries (Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Russia, Indonesia, Australia and Argentina) grew their exports to America by double-digit percentages last year. Not surprisingly, crude oil and other petroleum products were among the top exports to the US from these countries. Meanwhile, China closed in to challenge Canada as the United States’ leading supplier of imported products.
- Canada … US$339.5 billion (16.14% of total US imports) – up 7.1% from 2007
- China … $337.8 billion (16.06%) – up 5.1%
- Mexico … $215.9 billion (10.3%) – up 2.5%
- Japan … $139.3 billion (6.6%) – down 4.3%
- Germany … $97.5 billion (4.6%) – up 3.5%
- United Kingdom … $58.6 billion (2.8%) – up 3%
- Saudi Arabia … $54.7 billion (2.6%) – up 53.7%
- South Korea … $48.1 billion (2.3%) – up 1.1%
- France … $44.1 billion (2.1%) – up 6%
- Italy … $36.1 billion (1.7%) – up 3.2%
- Brazil … $30.5 billion (1.4%) – up 18.8%
- Russia … $26.8 billion (1.3%) – up 38.7%
- India … $25.7 billion (1.2%) – up 6.8%
- Indonesia … $15.8 billion (0.8%) – up 10.5%
- Australia … $10.6 billion (0.5%) – up 22.9%
- South Africa … $9.9 billion (0.5%) – up 9.9%
- Argentina … $5.8 billion (0.3%) – up 29.8%
- Turkey … $4.6 billion (0.2%) – up 0.9%.
US Exports to G20 Countries in 2008
America’s progress in growing export sales to its G20 trade partners was balanced and diversified in 2008. The US increased its shipments with double-digit gains to 12 of its 18 G20 customers.
- Canada … US$261.1 billion (20.3% of total US exports) – up 4.9% from 2007
- Mexico … $151.2 billion (11.7%) – up 11.3%
- China … $69.7 billion (5.4%) – up 10.8%
- Japan … $65.1 billion (5.1%) – up 6.5%
- Germany … $54.5 billion (4.23%) – up 10.3%
- United Kingdom … $53.6 billion (4.16%) – up 7.2%
- South Korea … $34.7 billion (2.7%) – up 0.8%
- Brazil … $32.3 billion (2.5%) – up 33.6%
- France … $28.8 billion (2.2%) – up 8.1%
- Australia … $22.2 billion (1.7%) – up 15.9%
- India … $17.7 billion (1.4%) – up 18.1%
- Italy … $15.5 billion (1.2%) – up 9.3%
- Saudi Arabia … $12.5 billion (1%) – up 20.1%
- Turkey … $10 billion (0.8%) – up 53.2%
- Russia … $9.3 billion (0.7%) – up 28.2%
- Argentina … $7.5 billion (0.6%) – up 28.7%
- South Africa … $6.5 billion (0.5%) – up 17.6%
- Indonesia … $5.6 billion (0.4%) – up 42.2%.
The US had the largest trade deficits with China ($268 billion), Canada ($78.3 billion), Japan (74.1 billion) and Mexico ($64.7 billion) during 2008.
Rather than focusing on using Made in America policies to quickly eliminate US negative trade balances country by country, America needs to show leadership by continuing to increase both export shipments and import consumption in 2009. International trade deficits did not cause the Great Recession. And protectionism certainly did not resolve the Great Depression; economists agree that protectionism made the depression longer and deeper than would have been the case have governments encouraged robust international trade growth.
Healthy global trade gains in 2010 and beyond will help extinguish the Great Recession and lead to restored prosperity around the world.
Sources
This analysis is based on latest statistics from the US Census Bureau - Foreign Trade Statistics as of the date of article publication.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
