That dollar amount reflects a 56.5% increase from $5.8 billion five years earlier during 2018.
Year over year, the overall value of Laotian exports accelerated by 27% compared to $7.2 billion for 2021.
The 5 biggest exports from Laos by value are electrical energy, unwrought gold, potassic fertilizers, uncoated paper, then natural rubber. Collectively, that quintet of 5 major Laotian exports represent about half (49.7%) of the Asian country’s international sales revenues during 2022.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2022, the Lao kip depreciated by -67.1% against the US dollar since 2018 and diluted by -44.7% from 2021 to 2022. Zambia’s weaker local currency makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Laos’ Key Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data shows that 96.1% of products exported from Laos were bought by importers in: Thailand (32.2% of the Laotian total), mainland China (31.4%), Vietnam (17.5%), Australia (4.9%), Cambodia (1.8%), Switzerland (1.6%), Singapore (1.28%), Hong Kong (1.23%), Japan (1.16%), Germany (1.09%), India (1.05%) and the United States of America (0.9%).
From a continental perspective, 88.8% of Laotian exports by value was delivered to fellow Asian countries while 5.2% was sold to importers in Europe. Another 4.9% worth was delivered to buyers in in Oceania led by Australia.
Tinier percentages went to North America (1.1%), Africa (0.1%), and Latin America (0.04%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.
Given Laos’ population of 7.48 million people, its total $9.1 billion in 2022 exports translates to about $1,200 for every resident in the Southeast Asian country. That dollar metric exceeds the average $740 per capita one year earlier in 2021.
Top 10 Exports from Laos
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Laotian global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Laos.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$2.3 billion (24.9% of total exports)
- Gems, precious metals: $955.1 million (10.5%)
- Ores, slag, ash: $645.4 million (7.1%)
- Fertilizers: $580.1 million (6.4%)
- Paper, paper items: $490.9 million (5.4%)
- Rubber, rubber articles: $459.9 million (5.1%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $436.4 million (4.8%)
- Woodpulp: $355.9 million (3.9%)
- Vegetables: $311.9 million (3.4%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $289.4 million (3.2%)
Laos’ top 10 exports accounted for three-quarters (74.6%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Fertilizers was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 290.7% from 2021 to 2022.
In second place for improving export sales was unknitted or non-crocheted clothing and accessories via a 127.5% advance.
Laos’s shipments of electrical machinery and equipment posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 61.1%.
The leading decliner among Laos’ top 10 export categories was paper including items made from paper, thanks to a -7.2% year-over-year reduction.
The above listed product categories are at the two-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level.
Drilling down to the more granular four-digit HTS codes, electrical energy represents Laos’ most valuable exported product at 24.7% of the country’s total. In second place was unwrought gold (8.9%) trailed by potassic fertilizers (6.3%), uncoated paper (5.4%), natural rubber (4.5%), copper ores and concentrates (4.1%), dissolving chemical woodpulp (3.5%), manioc tubers, sweet potatoes and yams (3.3%), phone devices including smartphones (2.2%), then unknitted and non-crocheted suits or trousers (2.1%).
Products Resulting in Best Laotian Trade Surpluses
Laos generated a $65.5 million trade surplus for 2022, shrinking -80.7% from $339.8 million in black ink one year earlier for 2021.
The following types of Laotian 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.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$1.1 billion (Up by 34.2% since 2021)
- Ores, slag, ash: $643.5 million (Up by 2.8%)
- Gems, precious metals: $605.7 million (Down by -13.3%)
- Fertilizers: $476.1 million (Up by 621.5%)
- Paper, paper items: $416.9 million (Down by -1.2%)
- Rubber, rubber articles: $375.3 million (Up by 55.6%)
- Woodpulp: $327.6 million (Up by 496.1%)
- Vegetables: $297.8 million (Down by -0.01%)
- Clothing, accessories (not knit or crochet): $250.8 million (Up by 114.2%)
- Footwear: $203.4 million (Up by 99%)
Laos has highly positive net exports in the international trade of electrical energy and, to a less extent, coal and lignite. In turn, these cashflows indicate Laos’ competitive advantages under the mineral fuels-related category.
Products Causing Largest Laotian Trade Deficits
Below are exports from Laos that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Laos’s goods trail Laotian importer spending on foreign products.
- Machinery including computers: -US$864.3 million (Up by 79.6% since 2021)
- Vehicles: -$549.9 million (Down by -8.4%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$383.8 million (Up by 64.7%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$256 million (Up by 57.4%)
- Sugar, sugar confectionery: -$252.8 million (Reversing a $38.3 million surplus)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$225.6 million (Up by 32.4%)
- Iron, steel: -$131.3 million (Up by 20%)
- Cereal/milk preparations: -$123.4 million (Up by 330.2%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: -$121 million (Up by 500.9%)
- Perfumes, cosmetics: -$107.8 million (Up by 303.4%)
Laos incurred highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the machinery including computers product category.
Laotian Export Companies
Not one Laotian corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia lists international trade-related companies from Laos. Selected examples are shown below.
- Electricité du Laos (electricity)
- Lao Airlines (airliner)
- Lao Brewery Company (alcoholic beverages)
- Lao Skyway (airliner)
- Nam Theun 2 Power Company (electricity)
In macroeconomic terms, total exported goods from Laos represent 13.2% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2022 ($68.8 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 13.2% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2022 compares to 8.8% for 2021. Those percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Laos’ total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Laos’ unemployment rate averaged 2.6% for 2022, down from an average 3.6% one year earlier according to Trading Economics.
Nicknamed the “Sandalwood City”, Vientiane is the capital city for Laos.
See also Indonesia’ Top 10 Exports, Indonesia’ Top 10 Imports, Top Asian Export Countries and Coal Exports by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Asia: Laos. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Forbes 2018 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on June 6, 2023
International Monetary Fund, Domestic Currency Exchange Rates (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on June 6, 2023
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on June 6, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Wikipedia, Flag of Laos. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Wikipedia, Laos. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Laos. Accessed on June 6, 2023
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on June 6, 2023