That dollar amount reflects a 33.9% increase since 2017 and a 42% acceleration from 2020 to 2021.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2021, the Argentine peso depreciated by a formidable -473.5% against the US dollar since 2017 and deteriorated by -34.7% from 2020 to 2021. Argentina’s weaker local currency makes its exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
At the detailed 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, the most valuable Argentinian exported products are corn, soyabean oilcake and other solid residues, soyabean oil, trucks, wheat, soya beans, frozen beef, biodiesel, crude oil, and crustaceans including lobsters. Collectively, those exported commodities accounted for 44.5% of Argentina’s total exports sales in 2021.
The latest available country-specific data shows that 59.8% of products exported from Argentina were bought by importers in: Brazil (15.1% of the global total), mainland China (7.9%), United States of America (6.4%), India (5.5%), Chile (5.4%), Vietnam (4.1%), Netherlands (3.8%), Peru (2.6%), Indonesia (2.39%), Spain (2.37%), South Korea (2.2%) and Egypt (2%).
From a continental perspective, 35% of Argentina’s exports by value were delivered to Asian countries while 31.7% were sold to importers in Latin America excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean. Argentina shipped another 16.3% worth of goods to Europe.
Smaller percentages went to North America (8.3%), Africa (7.6%) then Australia and New Zealand only from Oceania (1%).
Given Argentina’s population of 45.8 million people, its total $77.8 billion in 2021 exports translates to roughly $1,700 for every resident in the South American country. That per-capita metric compares to an average $1,200 for 2020.
Argentina’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Argentine global shipments during 2021. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Argentina.
- Cereals: US$12.8 billion (16.4% of total exports)
- Food industry waste, animal fodder: $9.2 billion (11.8%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $7.3 billion (9.4%)
- Vehicles: $6.1 billion (7.9%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: $3.7 billion (4.8%)
- Oil seeds: $3.7 billion (4.8%)
- Meat: $3.4 billion (4.3%)
- Other chemical goods: $2.4 billion (3.1%)
- Fish: $1.9 billion (2.5%)
- Gems, precious metals: $1.9 billion (2.4%)
Argentina’s top 10 exports were roughly two-thirds (67.4%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Miscellaneous chemical goods represents the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 187.4% from 2020 to 2021.
In second place for improving export sales was vehicles via a 87.2%.
Argentina’s shipments of mineral fuels including oil posted the third-fastest gain in value up by 76.9%.
The sole decliner among Argentina’s top 10 export categories was gems and precious metals thanks to a -5.1% drop year over year.
Products Generating Greatest Trade Surpluses for Argentina
Argentina earned an overall $14.7 billion trade surplus for 2021, up by 17.6% from $12.5 billion in black ink one year earlier.
The following types of Argentine 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.
- Cereals: US$12.8 billion (Up by 43.8% since 2020)
- Food industry waste, animal fodder: $9.1 billion (Up by 8.3%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $7.2 billion (Up by 53.4%)
- Meat: $3.2 billion (Up by 0.1%)
- Oil seeds: $2.4 billion (Reversing an -$815.5 million deficit)
- Gems, precious metals: $1.7 billion (Down by -8.1%)
- Dairy, eggs, honey: $1.2 billion (Up by 13.1%)
- Other chemical goods: $1.1 billion (Reversing a -$410 million deficit)
- Oil seeds: $995.7 million (Down by -26.1%)
- Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $868.7 million (Up by 12.2%)
Argentina has highly positive net exports in the international trade of cereals, notably corn, wheat, barley and rice. In turn, these cashflows indicate Argentina’s strong competitive advantages under the cereals category.
Products Causing Greatest Trade Deficits for Argentina
Below are exports from Argentina that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Argentina’s goods trail Argentine importer spending on foreign products.
- Machinery including computers: -US$8.4 billion (Up by 46.7% since 2020)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$6.5 billion (Up by 38.7%)
- Organic chemicals: -$2.9 billion (Up by 20.8%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$2.5 billion (Up by 62%)
- Fertilizers: -$2.3 billion (Up by 102.4%)
- Mineral fuels including oil: -$2.1 billion (Up by 351.4%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$2 billion (Up by 16.2%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: -$1.5 billion (Up by 36.6%)
- Iron, steel: -$1.5 billion (Up by 129.4%)
- Ores, slag, ash: -$1.1 billion (Up by 219.5%)
Argentina has highly negative net exports and therefore a deep international trade deficit under the machinery including computers category.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Argentina’s competitive disadvantages in the global machinery market, but also represent key opportunities for Argentina to improve its position in the global economy through focused innovations.
Argentina’s Export Companies
Not one of Argentina’s corporations ranks among Forbes’ Global 2000.
Wikipedia does list relatively smaller exporters from Argentina. Selected examples are shown below.
- Al Este (wine)
- Aluar (aluminum)
- Bridas Corporation (oil, gas)
- Bunge Limited (grains, oilseed)
- Grupo Arcor (chocolates, cookies, ice cream)
- La Serenísima (dairy products)
- Loma Negra (cement)
- SanCor (dairy products)
- Transportadora de Gas del Sur (natural gas)
- Zanella (motorcycles)
In macroeconomic terms, Argentina’s total exported goods represent 7.4% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2021 ($1.049 trillion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 7.4% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2021 compares to 5.9% for 2020. Those percentages suggest a relatively increasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Argentina’s total economic performance albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Argentina’s unemployment rate was 9.985% at October 2021, down from an average 11.5% jobless rate one year earlier for 2020 according to the International Monetary Fund.
Argentina’s capital city is Buenos Aires.
See also Argentina’s Top Trading Partners, Argentina’s Top 10 Imports and Top South American Export Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles, Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on March 29, 2022
Forbes 2017 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on March 29, 2022
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on March 29, 2022
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on March 29, 2022
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on March 29, 2022
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on March 29, 2022
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on March 29, 2022
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Argentina. Accessed on March 29, 2022
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on March 29, 2022
