That dollar amount results from a 122.7% upturn from $2.4 billion five years earlier in 2018.
Year over year, the total value of Armenian exports accelerated by 79% compared to $3 billion during 2021.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, Armenia’s legal currency is the Armenian dram. The dram appreciated by 9.8% against the US dollar since 2018 and rose 13.5% from 2021 to 2022. The stronger Armenian currency in 2022 made Armenian exports paid for in weaker US dollars relatively more expensive for international buyers compared to 2021.
Best Armenian Exports Customers
The latest available country-specific data shows that 89.5% of products exported from Armenia was bought by importers in: Russia (44.6% of Armenia’s total), United Arab Emirates (10.1%), mainland China (7%), Switzerland (4.8%), Iraq (4.7%), Netherlands (4%), Bulgaria (3.9%), Georgia (2.9%), Iran (2.1%), Germany (2%), India (1.9%) and Belgium (1.6%).
From a continental perspective, 66.1% of Armenia’s exports by value was delivered to fellow European countries while 32.1% was sold to importers in Asia. Armenia shipped another 1.5% worth of goods to North America.
Tinier percentages went to Latin America (0.2%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, Africa (0.04%), then Oceania’s Australia and New Zealand (0.01%).
Given Armenia’s population of 2.962 million people, its total $5.31 billion in 2022 exports translates to roughly $1,800 for every resident in the Western Asian country. That dollar metric exceeds the average $1,000 per capita one year earlier during 2021.
Armenia’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Armenian global shipments during 2022 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 Armenia.
- Gems, precious metals: US$989.3 million (18.6% of total exports)
- Meat: $775.7 million (14.6%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $507.1 million (9.6%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $360 million (6.8%)
- Tobacco, manufactured substitutes: $344.2 million (6.5%)
- Vehicles: $310 million (5.8%)
- Iron, steel: $264.6 million (5%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $240.5 million (4.5%)
- Machinery including computers: $188 million (3.5%)
- Aluminum: $146 million (2.8%)
Armenia’s top 10 exports generated over three-quarters (77.7%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Electrical machinery and equipment was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 1,934% from 2021 to 2022.
In second place for improving export sales were vehicles via a 795.4% advance led by motor cars.
Armenia’s shipments of machinery including computers posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 493%.
The lone decliner among Armenia’s top 10 export categories was meat, pulled down by a -7.4% year-over-year drop.
From the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, unmounted diamonds comprise Armenia ’s most valuable exported product at 7.9% of the country’s total. In second place was unwrought gold (7.8%) trailed by cigarettes and cigars (6%), alcoholic beverages including spirits and liqueurs (5.5%), phone devices including smartphones (5.1%), iron ferroalloys (4.7%), cars (also 4.7%), molybdenum ores or concentrates (2.9%), thin aluminum foil (2.4%), then jewelry (2.1%).
Products Generating Armenia’s Largest Trade Surpluses
The following types of Armenian 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.
- Meat: US$659.6 million (Down by -10.6% since 2021)
- Gems, precious metals: $298.7 million (Up by 283.7%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $291.2 million (Up by 23.5%)
- Tobacco, manufactured substitutes: $255.6 million (Up by 59.2%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $237.5 million (Up by 75.2%)
- Fish: $92.9 million (Up by 158.3%)
- Iron, steel: $58.7 million (Down by -24.6%)
- Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $37.9 million (Up by 187.2%)
- Vegetables: $31.7 million (Down by -23.9%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $30.2 million (Down by -39.1%)
Armenia has highly positive net exports in the international trade of meat, notably sheep and goat meat. In turn, these cashflows indicate Armenia’s strong competitive advantages under the meat product category.
Products Causing Armenia’s Largest Trade Deficits
Armenia incurred an overall -$3.3 billion trade deficit for 2022, expanding by 41% from -$2.4 billion in red ink one year earlier for 2021.
Below are exports from Armenia that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Armenia’s goods trail Armenian importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$1.2 billion (Up by 29.5% since 2021)
- Machinery including computers: -$663.2 million (Up by 38%)
- Vehicles: -$509.5 million (Up by 150.9%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$357.9 million (Up by 0.2%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$195.6 million (Up by 33.4%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$186.9 million (Up by 12.1%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$164.9 million (Up by 68.8%)
- Cereals: -$148.5 million (Up by 67%)
- Paper, paper items: -$124 million (Up by 52.6%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: -$98 million (Up by 35.5%)
Armenia has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits notably for refined petroleum oils and petroleum gases under the mineral fuels including oil category.
Armenian Export Companies
Not one Armenian corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists export-related companies from Armenia. Selected examples are shown below.
- Ararat Cement (construction materials)
- Avshar Wine Factory (winery)
- Jermuk Mineral Water Factory (mineral water)
- Kotayk Brewery (alcoholic beverages)
- Multi Group Stone (stone works)
- Ucom (telecommunications)
- Yerevan Brandy Company (alcoholic beverages)
- Yerevan Computer Research and Development Institute (technology)
- Yerevan Confectionery and Macaroni Factory (food)
- Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum (metals)
In macroeconomic terms, Armenia’s total exported goods represent 10.1% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($52.7 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 10.1% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 6.8% one year earlier. Those percentages suggest an increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Armenia’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Armenia’s unemployment rate averaged 12.5% for 2022, down from an average 15.3% in 2021 according to statistics from the International Monetary Fund.
Armenia’s capital city is Yerevan.
See also Zambia’s Top 10 Exports, Turkey’s Top 10 Exports, Russia’s Top Trading Partners, Switzerland’s Top Trading Partners and Top Asian Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, Country Profiles, The World Factbook. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on June 20, 2023
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on June 20, 2023
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on June 20, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Wikipedia, Armenia. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Armenia. Accessed on June 20, 2023
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on June 20, 2023