That dollar amount results from an average 4.1% increase for all beer shippers over the five-year period starting in 2018 when global beer sales were $15.8 billion.
From 2021 to 2022, the value of globally exported beer dropped -1.5% starting from $16.7 billion.
By value, the world’s biggest beer exporters (Mexico, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and the United States of America) shipped over two-thirds (67.4%) of ale sold on international markets in 2022.
Among continents, European countries sold the highest dollar worth of exported beer on global markets during 2022 with shipments valued at $8.5 billion or 51.8% of the worldwide total. In second place were North American beer exporters at 38.1% trailed by Asian suppliers at another 6.3%.
Smaller percentages came from Latin America (1.82%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, Africa (1.78%) and Oceania (0.3%) led by Australia and New Zealand.
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 2203 for beer made from malt.
Beer Exports by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of beer during 2022.
- Mexico: US$4.3 billion (28.4% of total beer exports)
- Netherlands: $2.1 billion (14.1%)
- Belgium: $2 billion (13.3%)
- Germany: $1.3 billion (8.4%)
- United States: $645.6 million (4.3%)
- United Kingdom: $525.5 million (3.5%)
- France: $386.4 million (2.6%)
- Czech Republic: $297 million (2%)
- Ireland: $289.9 million (1.9%)
- Spain: $285.2 million (1.9%)
- Denmark: $255.8 million (1.7%)
- Italy: $254.5 million (1.7%)
- China: $242.8 million (1.6%)
- Poland: $239.1 million (1.6%)
- Portugal: $151.1 million (1%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 88.2% of global beer exported in 2022.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing beer exporters from 2021 to 2022 were: Spain (up 17.3%), Poland (up 15.8%), France (up 10.1%) and Netherlands (up 4.5%).
Those countries that posted declines in their exported beer sales were led by: United States (down -19.9%), United Kingdom (down -17.7%), Ireland (down -15.8%), Czech Republic (down -10.4%) and Denmark (down -7.3%).
Countries with Greatest Beer Trade Surpluses
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for beer during 2022. 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 beer and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Mexico: US$5.5 billion (net export surplus up 9.5% since 2021)
- Belgium: $1.6 billion (down -14.8%)
- Netherlands: $1.5 billion (down -4.3%)
- Germany: $765 million (down -18.1%)
- Czech Republic: $297.1 million (down -5.3%)
- Denmark: $231.2 million (up 2.4%)
- Poland: $152.9 million (down -16.3%)
- Brazil: $107 million (down -7.5%)
- Portugal: $91.8 million (down -3%)
- Namibia: $77.5 million (up 38.9%)
- Ireland: $76.6 million (up 82.2%)
- Thailand: $72.5 million (down -12.8%)
- Vietnam: $53.2 million (down -27.6%)
- Türkiye: $42.7 million (up 30.8%)
- India: $38.4 million (up 8.7%)
World-leading Mexico generated the highest surplus in the international trade of beer. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms the strong Mexican competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Countries with Worst Beer Trade Deficits
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for beer during 2022. 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 beer purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- United States: -US$6.4 billion (net export deficit up 4.9% since 2021)
- France: -$660.9 million (up 5.7%)
- Italy: -$388.9 million (down -0.1%)
- mainland China: -$323 million (down -25.2%)
- Canada: -$310.7 million (up 6.9%)
- Taiwan: -$222.6 million (up 1.6%)
- Chile: -$207.1 million (down -23.6%)
- Australia: -$202.9 million (down -4.5%)
- United Arab Emirates: -$168.9 million (up 72.2%)
- Paraguay: -$147.3 million (up 710.7%)
- Russia: -$135.1 million (down -46.9%)
- Cuba: -$126.4 million (up 355.9%)
- South Korea: -$125.6 million (down -23%)
- Honduras: -$115 million (up 41.7%)
- Switzerland: -$109.5 million (down -3.5%)
The United States of America incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of beer. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights America’s competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for beer-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful consumer demand.
Beer Exporting Brands
Below are global beer brands that represent established players engaged in the international trade of beer. The home country for each brand is shown within parenthesis.
- Beck’s (Germany)
- Corona (Mexico)
- Foster’s Lager (Australia)
- Genesee Cream Ale (United States)
- Guinness (United Kingdom)
- Kingfisher (India)
- Molson Canadian (Canada)
- Peroni (Italy)
- Starobrno (Czech Republic)
- Stella Artois (Belgium)
Searchable List of Beer Exporting Countries in 2022
By value, the key 100 exporters of beer showcased in the following database account for 99.9% of all brew shipped during 2022.
| Rank | Exporter | Beer Exports | 2021-2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mexico | $5,486,279,000 | +9.4% |
| 2. | Netherlands | $2,028,737,000 | -6.3% |
| 3. | Belgium | $1,680,073,000 | -16.1% |
| 4. | Germany | $1,213,201,000 | -13.8% |
| 5. | United States | $671,970,000 | +23.7% |
| 6. | United Kingdom | $602,131,000 | +6% |
| 7. | France | $350,351,000 | -13.8% |
| 8. | Czech Republic | $330,696,000 | -4.7% |
| 9. | China | $327,116,000 | +17.3% |
| 10. | Spain | $325,411,000 | +2.9% |
| 11. | Ireland | $313,267,000 | +12% |
| 12. | Denmark | $291,712,000 | -3.4% |
| 13. | Italy | $254,290,000 | -11.1% |
| 14. | Poland | $238,629,000 | -8.3% |
| 15. | Portugal | $160,098,000 | +3.5% |
| 16. | Brazil | $120,048,000 | -8.7% |
| 17. | Thailand | $111,593,000 | +8.9% |
| 18. | South Africa | $110,338,000 | +19.5% |
| 19. | Canada | $102,072,000 | -0.7% |
| 20. | Singapore | $100,361,000 | +6.5% |
| 21. | Russia | $94,797,000 | -41.1% |
| 22. | Vietnam | $93,523,000 | +14.6% |
| 23. | Namibia | $86,675,000 | +37.6% |
| 24. | Japan | $82,307,000 | +22.7% |
| 25. | Austria | $78,689,000 | -5.9% |
| 26. | Lithuania | $70,841,000 | +2.7% |
| 27. | South Korea | $69,474,000 | +15.8% |
| 28. | Serbia | $67,465,000 | +5.9% |
| 29. | Türkiye | $60,804,000 | +27.6% |
| 30. | Greece | $47,920,000 | -2% |
| 31. | Croatia | $46,167,000 | +49% |
| 32. | Slovenia | $45,941,000 | -30.7% |
| 33. | India | $44,744,000 | +10.6% |
| 34. | Sweden | $39,782,000 | +12.8% |
| 35. | Latvia | $38,562,000 | +39.2% |
| 36. | Estonia | $34,581,000 | -11.7% |
| 37. | Hong Kong | $33,094,000 | +14.8% |
| 38. | Malaysia | $32,657,000 | +1.9% |
| 39. | Romania | $28,230,000 | +0% |
| 40. | Jamaica | $27,394,000 | -12.4% |
| 41. | Panama | $26,042,000 | +101.5% |
| 42. | Kenya | $23,802,000 | +32.1% |
| 43. | Hungary | $22,583,000 | -4.2% |
| 44. | Australia | $21,803,000 | +35.7% |
| 45. | New Zealand | $21,668,000 | -14.2% |
| 46. | Nicaragua | $21,555,000 | +59% |
| 47. | Ukraine | $19,097,000 | -55% |
| 48. | Finland | $18,907,000 | +39.2% |
| 49. | Luxembourg | $18,410,000 | +10.7% |
| 50. | Kazakhstan | $17,771,000 | +55.4% |
| 51. | Slovakia | $17,674,000 | +23.9% |
| 52. | Peru | $16,143,000 | +48.9% |
| 53. | Togo | $15,323,000 | -6.9% |
| 54. | Guatemala | $13,537,000 | +22.8% |
| 55. | Dominican Republic | $12,960,000 | -32.7% |
| 56. | Saint Lucia | $12,426,000 | +11.3% |
| 57. | Sri Lanka | $11,115,000 | -4.2% |
| 58. | Trinidad/Tobago | $11,009,000 | +27.3% |
| 59. | Uganda | $10,341,000 | -66.1% |
| 60. | Norway | $10,216,000 | -3.2% |
| 61. | Burundi | $9,612,000 | +48.3% |
| 62. | Costa Rica | $8,489,000 | +4.7% |
| 63. | Indonesia | $7,219,000 | +26.5% |
| 64. | Taiwan | $6,349,000 | -11% |
| 65. | Angola | $6,294,000 | -49.3% |
| 66. | El Salvador | $6,062,000 | +23.1% |
| 67. | Nigeria | $5,503,000 | -35.9% |
| 68. | Laos | $4,970,000 | -9.2% |
| 69. | Colombia | $4,918,000 | +84.3% |
| 70. | Cameroon | $4,881,000 | -20.6% |
| 71. | Armenia | $4,317,000 | +183.8% |
| 72. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $4,202,000 | +32.3% |
| 73. | Montenegro | $3,685,000 | +5.6% |
| 74. | Argentina | $3,550,000 | -77.9% |
| 75. | North Macedonia | $3,533,000 | -10.1% |
| 76. | Switzerland | $3,475,000 | +19.3% |
| 77. | Georgia | $3,432,000 | +144.4% |
| 78. | United Arab Emirates | $3,309,000 | -88.3% |
| 79. | Zambia | $3,255,000 | +11124% |
| 80. | Lebanon | $3,225,000 | +3.3% |
| 81. | Bulgaria | $2,954,000 | -79.4% |
| 82. | Saint Kitts/Nevis | $2,868,000 | -1.7% |
| 83. | Mozambique | $2,839,000 | -2.8% |
| 84. | Suriname | $2,663,000 | +90.4% |
| 85. | Philippines | $2,619,000 | +42.3% |
| 86. | Jordan | $2,409,000 | +11.8% |
| 87. | Morocco | $2,228,000 | -53.1% |
| 88. | Cyprus | $2,113,000 | +25.2% |
| 89. | Bhutan | $2,102,000 | +145% |
| 90. | Benin | $1,695,000 | +1.1% |
| 91. | St Vincent/Grenadines | $1,558,000 | +49.7% |
| 92. | Iceland | $1,552,000 | -56.2% |
| 93. | Tunisia | $1,471,000 | -18% |
| 94. | Uruguay | $1,467,000 | -35.2% |
| 95. | Chile | $1,445,000 | +50.4% |
| 96. | Belarus | $1,424,000 | -95.1% |
| 97. | Zimbabwe | $1,399,000 | +1843% |
| 98. | Ethiopia | $1,393,000 | +1% |
| 99. | Equatorial Guinea | $1,243,000 | +45% |
| 100. | Ecuador | $1,168,000 | -32.8% |
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of the columns. An entry of 0% in the right-most column means no 2021 data was available.
See also Beer Imports by Country, Wine Exports by Country and Top Soft Drinks Exporters by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on August 14, 2023
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 14, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 14, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 14, 2023
Wikipedia, Category:Beer brands by country. Accessed on August 14, 2023
