That dollar amount results from a -19.8% decrease since 2018 when Namibian exports totaled $7.5 billion.
Year over year, the value of Namibia’s exported goods accelerated by 34.6% compared to $4.46 billion for 2021.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, the Namibia dollar depreciated by -23.6% against the US dollar since 2018 and diluted by -10.7% from 2021 to 2022. Namibia’s weaker local currency makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Namibia’s Major Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data shows that 84.5% of products exported from Namibia were bought by importers in: South Africa (17.3% of the Namibian total), Botswana (17.2%), mainland China (12.3%), Zambia (7.7%), Democratic Republic Congo (5.5%), Netherlands (5.4%), Spain (5.1%), United Arab Emirates (3.5%), Belgium (3.4%), France (3.2%), United States of America (2.1%) and Hong Kong (1.8%).
From a continental perspective, 51.8% of Namibia’s exports by value was delivered to fellow African countries while 23.4% was sold to importers in Europe. Namibia shipped another 20.8% worth of goods to customers in Asia.
Smaller percentages went to buyers in North America (3.5%), Oceania (0.4%) led by Marshall Islands and Australia, then Latin America (0.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.
Given Namibia’s population of 2.6 million people, its total $6 billion in 2022 exports translates to an estimated $2,300 for every resident in the southwest African country. That dollar metric exceeds the average $1,660 per capita calculated for one year earlier during 2021.
Namibia’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Namibian global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Namibia.
- Gems, precious metals: US$1.8 billion (29.7% of total exports)
- Ores, slag, ash: $1.2 billion (19.7%)
- Fish: $739.6 million (12.3%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $446.3 million (7.4%)
- Copper: $202.1 million (3.4%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $158.8 million (2.6%)
- Inorganic chemicals: $142.9 million (2.4%)
- Machinery including computers: $116.1 million (1.9%)
- Live animals: $112 million (1.9%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $106.5 million (1.8%)
Namibia’s top 10 exports accounted for 83.1% of the overall value of its global shipments.
Mineral fuels including oil was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 180.3% from 2021 to 2022.
In second place for improving export sales was machinery including computers via a 139.6% advance.
Namibia’s shipments of inorganic chemicals posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 65%.
The leading decliner among Namibia’s top 10 export categories was copper, dragged down by a -14.7% year-over-year drop.
At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, unmounted and unset diamonds represent Namibia’s most valuable exported product at 22.3% of the country’s total. In second place were uranium or thorium ores and concentrates (13.7%), unwrought gold (7.4%), processed petroleum oils (6.8%), fish fillets plus other pieces (5.6%), frozen whole fish (5.4%), coppers ores and concentrates (3.7%), unrefined copper (2.5%), cobalt oxides or hydroxides (2.1%), then malt beer (1.4%).
Products Generating Namibia’s Best Trade Surpluses
The following types of Namibian 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.
- Gems, precious metals: US$1.5 billion (Up by 32.1% since 2021)
- Fish: $659 million (Down by -3.8%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $619.2 million (Up by 148.4%)
- Copper: $193.7 million (Down by -16.1%)
- Live animals: $108.3 million (Up by 12.5%)
- Fruits, nuts: $64.4 million (Up by 34.9%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $45.3 million (Down by -13.9%)
- Books, newspapers, pictures: $40.7 million (Up by 561.4%)
- Wood: $39.4 million (Up by 74.3%)
- Meat: $26.9 million (Reversing a -$2.8 million deficit)
Namibia has highly positive net exports in the international trade of diamonds and gold. In turn, these cashflows indicate Namibia’s strong competitive advantages under the gems and precious metals category.
Products Causing Namibia’s Worst Trade Deficits
Overall Namibia incurred a -US$1.95 billion trade deficit for 2022, decreasing by -1.6% from -$1.99 billion one year earlier in 2021.
Below are exports from Namibia that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Namibia’s goods trail Namibian importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$1 billion (Up by 42.2% since 2021)
- Machinery including computers: -$569.6 million (Up by 15.9%)
- Vehicles: -$529.4 million (Up by 16%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$344.1 million (Up by 8.8%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$182.8 million (Down by -0.6%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$171.1 million (Up by 13.8%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$168.2 million (Down by -16.8%)
- Ships, boats: -$158.7 million (Up by 3142.2%)
- Cereals: -$125.2 million (Up by 19.7%)
- Other chemical goods: -$104.1 million (Up by 39.6%)
Namibia has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the energy-related product category titled mineral fuels including oil.
Namibian Export Companies
Not one Namibian corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists companies from Namibia that participate in international trade transactions. Selected examples are shown below.
- Air Namibia (airliner)
- BidFish (fishery, fish processor)
- FIDES Bank Namibia (commercial bank)
- MTC Namibia (mobile telecommunications)
- Namib Mills (grain processor)
- Ohorongo Cement (cement)
- TN Mobile (mobile telecommunications)
In macroeconomic terms, Namibia’s total exported goods represent an estimated 21.2% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($28.3 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 21.2% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 17.1% for 2021. Those percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Namibia’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic health is its unemployment rate. Namibia’s jobless rate averaged 20.85% for 2022, down from an average 21.27% for 2021.
Namibia’s capital city is Windhoek, a term that translates to “windy corner” in the Afrikaans language.
See also Botswana’s Top 10 Exports, Uganda’s Top 10 Exports, Somalia’s Top 10 Exports and Top African Export Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on September 30, 2023
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity)
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Wikipedia, Flag of Namibia. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Namibia. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Wikipedia, Namibia. Accessed on September 30, 2023
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on September 30, 2023
World’s Capital Cities, Capital Facts for Windhoek, Namibia. Accessed on September 30, 2023