Lead is an easily worked and corrosion-resistant metal. It used to make pipes, paint, car batteries, ammunition, cable sheathing, radiation protection and in some solders. Lead containers store corrosive liquids.
Breaking down lead sold on international markets into its product subcategories, the top seller is unwrought lead at 82.3% of the global total. In second place is lead waste and scrap (7.4%) trailed by lead plates, sheets, strips and foil (5.4%) then miscellaneous articles made from lead (4.4%).
Among continents, European countries sold the highest dollar worth of exported lead during 2018 with shipments valued at 39%. In second place were exporters in Asia at 32.2% while 13% of worldwide lead shipments originated from North America with 9.5% coming from Oceania led by Australia. Smaller percentages came from Latin America (3.7%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, and Africa (2.6%).
For research purposes, the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix for lead is 78.
Top Lead Exports by Country
Top 15
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of lead (including articles made from lead) during 2018.
- South Korea: US$877.9 million (10.2% of total lead exports)
- Australia: $816.6 million (9.4%)
- Canada: $607.5 million (7%)
- United Kingdom: $598.4 million (6.9%)
- Germany: $509 million (5.9%)
- India: $436.3 million (5%)
- Belgium: $325.9 million (3.8%)
- United States: $291.7 million (3.4%)
- Russia: $240.2 million (2.8%)
- Mexico: $228.1 million (2.6%)
- Malaysia: $207.1 million (2.4%)
- Kazakhstan: $204.6 million (2.4%)
- France: $204 million (2.4%)
- Poland: $201.5 million (2.3%)
- Bulgaria: $194.6 million (2.3%)
The listed 15 countries shipped over two-thirds (68.8%) of all lead exported in 2018 by value.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing lead exporters since 2014 were: India (up 126.6%), United States (up 40.5%), South Korea (up 39.8%) and Russia (up 27.2%).
Those countries that posted declines in their exported lead sales were led by: Germany (down -19.2%), Poland (down -17.2%), Belgium (down -10.7%), Canada (down -5.7%) and Kazakhstan (down -2.4%).
Advantages
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for lead during 2018. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s exported lead and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Australia: US$805.8 million (net export surplus up 13.8% since 2014)
- Canada: $584.1 million (down -6.4%)
- South Korea: $488.4 million (up 160%)
- Russia: $226.2 million (up 23.5%)
- Kazakhstan: $199.9 million (down -3.3%)
- Mexico: $172.9 million (up 2.6%)
- Belgium: $170.6 million (up 11.8%)
- Sweden: $160.9 million (up 28.2%)
- United Kingdom: $133.5 million (down -7.1%)
- Bulgaria: $118.7 million (down -6.8%)
- Malaysia: $99.3 million (down -382.2%)
- Netherlands: $80.2 million (down -44.6%)
- Argentina: $75.1 million (up 67.2%)
- Ecuador: $56.5 million (up 94%)
- Iran: $56.3 million (down -55%)
Australia has the highest surplus in the international trade of lead. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms Australia’s strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Opportunities
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for lead during 2018. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s imported lead purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- United States: -US$1.1 billion (net export deficit down -2.4% since 2014)
- India: -$427 million (up 5.4%)
- Vietnam: -$342 million (up 37.4%)
- Spain: -$305.5 million (up 25.7%)
- Turkey: -$301.9 million (up 29.1%)
- China: -$269 million (reversing a $90 million surplus)
- Czech Republic: -$243.1 million (up 16.5%)
- Thailand: -$233.3 million (up 16.7%)
- Italy: -$177.8 million (up 13%)
- Indonesia: -$148.2 million (down -15.2%)
- Brazil: -$135.9 million (down -15.2%)
- Philippines: -$111.4 million (up 240.4%)
- Japan: -$107.6 million (up 100.1%)
- Taiwan: -$95.9 million (down -8.6%)
- Germany: -$83.2 million (reversing a $203.6 million surplus)
The United States of America incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of lead. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights America’s competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for lead-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful demand.
Companies
Lead Exporting Companies
Below are lead businesses that represent established players engaged in the international trade of lead. Their home country is shown within parenthesis.
- EaglePicher Technologies (United States)
- Glencore plc (United Kingdom/Switzerland)
- NL Industries (United States)
- Ryazan Plant (Russia)
Searchable List of Lead Exporting Countries
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icons at the top of the columns.
| Rank | Exporter | Lead Exports (US$) | %Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | South Korea | $877,897,000 | 10.2% |
| 2. | Australia | $816,648,000 | 9.4% |
| 3. | Canada | $607,540,000 | 0.07 |
| 4. | United Kingdom | $598,426,000 | 6.9% |
| 5. | Germany | $508,983,000 | 5.9% |
| 6. | India | $436,343,000 | 0.05 |
| 7. | Belgium | $325,901,000 | 3.8% |
| 8. | United States | $291,694,000 | 3.4% |
| 9. | Russia | $240,243,000 | 2.8% |
| 10. | Mexico | $228,124,000 | 2.6% |
| 11. | Malaysia | $207,050,000 | 2.4% |
| 12. | Kazakhstan | $204,625,000 | 2.4% |
| 13. | France | $204,045,000 | 2.4% |
| 14. | Poland | $201,490,000 | 2.3% |
| 15. | Bulgaria | $194,566,000 | 2.3% |
| 16. | Sweden | $183,551,000 | 2.1% |
| 17. | Czech Republic | $171,439,000 | 0.02 |
| 18. | Netherlands | $156,229,000 | 1.8% |
| 19. | China | $132,409,000 | 1.5% |
| 20. | Italy | $119,145,000 | 1.4% |
| 21. | United Arab Emirates | $109,973,000 | 1.3% |
| 22. | Iran | $95,860,000 | 1.1% |
| 23. | Taiwan | $89,205,000 | 0.01 |
| 24. | Vietnam | $88,915,000 | 0.01 |
| 25. | Argentina | $76,583,000 | 0.9% |
| 26. | Ecuador | $58,496,000 | 0.7% |
| 27. | Thailand | $57,046,000 | 0.7% |
| 28. | Ireland | $56,489,000 | 0.7% |
| 29. | Austria | $55,762,000 | 0.6% |
| 30. | Israel | $55,473,000 | 0.6% |
| 31. | Saudi Arabia | $52,129,000 | 0.6% |
| 32. | Singapore | $47,890,000 | 0.6% |
| 33. | Lebanon | $45,643,000 | 0.5% |
| 34. | Nigeria | $43,706,000 | 0.5% |
| 35. | Greece | $43,342,000 | 0.5% |
| 36. | Romania | $42,437,000 | 0.5% |
| 37. | Spain | $40,269,000 | 0.5% |
| 38. | Japan | $39,370,000 | 0.5% |
| 39. | Brazil | $37,065,000 | 0.4% |
| 40. | Chile | $34,703,000 | 0.4% |
| 41. | Ukraine | $33,673,000 | 0.4% |
| 42. | South Africa | $31,267,000 | 0.4% |
| 43. | Portugal | $30,686,000 | 0.4% |
| 44. | Estonia | $28,424,000 | 0.3% |
| 45. | Philippines | $26,946,000 | 0.3% |
| 46. | Peru | $24,873,000 | 0.3% |
| 47. | Myanmar (Burma) | $24,696,000 | 0.3% |
| 48. | Belarus | $22,777,000 | 0.3% |
| 49. | Indonesia | $22,564,000 | 0.3% |
| 50. | Turkey | $22,092,000 | 0.3% |
| 51. | Ghana | $21,009,000 | 0.2% |
| 52. | Costa Rica | $20,627,000 | 0.2% |
| 53. | Sri Lanka | $19,846,000 | 0.2% |
| 54. | Yemen | $19,644,000 | 0.2% |
| 55. | Bangladesh | $18,175,000 | 0.2% |
| 56. | Serbia | $17,981,000 | 0.2% |
| 57. | Venezuela | $17,392,000 | 0.2% |
| 58. | Tanzania | $16,129,000 | 0.2% |
| 59. | Croatia | $15,698,000 | 0.2% |
| 60. | Sudan | $15,615,000 | 0.2% |
| 61. | Tunisia | $15,244,000 | 0.2% |
| 62. | Zambia | $14,176,000 | 0.2% |
| 63. | Jordan | $14,119,000 | 0.2% |
| 64. | Syria | $13,257,000 | 0.2% |
| 65. | Finland | $12,955,000 | 0.1% |
| 66. | Slovenia | $12,378,000 | 0.1% |
| 67. | Azerbaijan | $10,920,000 | 0.1% |
| 68. | Cayman Islands | $10,661,000 | 0.1% |
| 69. | Cambodia | $9,914,000 | 0.1% |
| 70. | Cameroon | $8,394,000 | 0.1% |
| 71. | Switzerland | $7,874,000 | 0.1% |
| 72. | Afghanistan | $7,841,000 | 0.1% |
| 73. | Egypt | $7,554,000 | 0.1% |
| 74. | Senegal | $7,508,000 | 0.1% |
| 75. | Georgia | $7,391,000 | 0.1% |
| 76. | Hungary | $7,390,000 | 0.1% |
| 77. | Honduras | $7,146,000 | 0.1% |
| 78. | Lithuania | $7,056,000 | 0.1% |
| 79. | Colombia | $6,886,000 | 0.1% |
| 80. | Denmark | $6,606,000 | 0.1% |
| 81. | Libya | $6,463,000 | 0.1% |
| 82. | Slovakia | $6,449,000 | 0.1% |
| 83. | Namibia | $6,029,000 | 0.1% |
| 84. | Qatar | $5,360,000 | 0.1% |
| 85. | Rwanda | $5,025,000 | 0.1% |
| 86. | Guatemala | $4,892,000 | 0.1% |
| 87. | Uzbekistan | $4,732,000 | 0.1% |
| 88. | Albania | $4,171,000 | 0.05% |
| 89. | Paraguay | $4,088,000 | 0.05% |
| 90. | Nepal | $4,081,000 | 0.05% |
| 91. | New Zealand | $3,922,000 | 0.05% |
| 92. | Iraq | $3,918,000 | 0.05% |
| 93. | Algeria | $3,757,000 | 0.04% |
| 94. | Norway | $3,748,000 | 0.04% |
| 95. | Morocco | $3,655,000 | 0.04% |
| 96. | Latvia | $3,572,000 | 0.04% |
| 97. | El Salvador | $3,377,000 | 0.04% |
| 98. | Congo | $3,336,000 | 0.04% |
| 99. | Dominican Republic | $3,010,000 | 0.03% |
| 100. | Panama | $2,910,000 | 0.03% |
| 101. | Cuba | $2,899,000 | 0.03% |
| 102. | Kyrgyzstan | $2,617,000 | 0.03% |
| 103. | Togo | $2,564,000 | 0.03% |
| 104. | Mongolia | $2,433,000 | 0.03% |
| 105. | Gabon | $2,246,000 | 0.03% |
| 106. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $1,790,000 | 0.02% |
| 107. | Ivory Coast | $1,733,000 | 0.02% |
| 108. | Uganda | $1,684,000 | 0.02% |
| 109. | Hong Kong | $1,677,000 | 0.02% |
| 110. | Haiti | $1,605,000 | 0.02% |
| 111. | Cyprus | $1,384,000 | 0.02% |
| 112. | Laos | $1,322,000 | 0.02% |
| 113. | Democr. Rep. Congo | $1,298,000 | 0.02% |
| 114. | Kuwait | $1,249,000 | 0.01% |
| 115. | Bolivia | $1,159,000 | 0.01% |
| 116. | Oman | $1,099,000 | 0.01% |
| 117. | Mali | $957,000 | 0.01% |
| 118. | Guinea | $945,000 | 0.01% |
| 119. | Botswana | $942,000 | 0.01% |
| 120. | Luxembourg | $636,000 | 0.01% |
| 121. | Mozambique | $551,000 | 0.01% |
| 122. | Equatorial Guinea | $413,000 | 0.005% |
| 123. | Lesotho | $312,000 | 0.004% |
| 124. | Uruguay | $295,000 | 0.003% |
| 125. | Palestine | $290,000 | 0.003% |
| 126. | Suriname | $287,000 | 0.003% |
| 127. | Trinidad/Tobago | $260,000 | 0.003% |
| 128. | Montenegro | $191,000 | 0.002% |
| 129. | Aruba | $185,000 | 0.002% |
| 130. | Guyana | $179,000 | 0.002% |
| 131. | Curaçao | $121,000 | 0.001% |
| 132. | North Macedonia | $74,000 | 0.001% |
| 133. | Somalia | $66,000 | 0.001% |
| 134. | Armenia | $65,000 | 0.001% |
| 135. | Saint Kitts/Nevis | $53,000 | 0.001% |
| 136. | Zimbabwe | $53,000 | 0.001% |
| 137. | Grenada | $45,000 | 0.001% |
| 138. | Malawi | $35,000 | 0.0004% |
| 139. | Brunei Darussalam | $32,000 | 0.0004% |
| 140. | Iceland | $31,000 | 0.0004% |
| 141. | Bahrain | $29,000 | 0.0003% |
| 142. | Saint Lucia | $27,000 | 0.0003% |
| 143. | Timor-Leste | $22,000 | 0.0003% |
| 144. | US Minor Outlying Is | $22,000 | 0.0003% |
| 145. | Gibraltar | $17,000 | 0.0002% |
| 146. | Central African Rep | $11,000 | 0.0001% |
| 147. | Liberia | $11,000 | 0.0001% |
| 148. | Burundi | $7,000 | 0.0001% |
| 149. | Bahamas | $7,000 | 0.0001% |
| 150. | Angola | $5,000 | 0.0001% |
| 151. | Palau | $5,000 | 0.0001% |
| 152. | Vanuatu | $4,000 | 0.00005% |
| 153. | Antigua/Barbuda | $4,000 | 0.00005% |
| 154. | Andorra | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 155. | Nicaragua | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 156. | Turkmenistan | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 157. | Eswatini | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
See also Top Aluminum Exporters by Country, Copper, Top Nickel Exporters by Country and Iron Ore Exports by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on November 12, 2019
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on November 12, 2019
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on November 12, 2019
Royal Society of Chemistry, Periodic Table: Lead. Accessed on November 12, 2019
Wikipedia, Lead. Accessed on November 12, 2019