That calculated dollar amount results from a -76.5% reduction from five years earlier in 2020 when Belarusian exports totaled $29.2 billion.
Year over year, overall exports sold by Belarus reduced by -13% compared to $7.9 billion starting from 2023.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2024, the Belarusian ruble depreciated by -25.8% against the US dollar since 2020 and diluted by -18.4% from 2023 to 2024. Belarus’ weaker local currency made Belarusian exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers starting from American currency.
Biggest Belarusian Trading Partners
The latest available country-specific data is for 2021. Those metrics show that three-quarters (75.1%) of products exported from Belarus were bought by importers in: Russia (49.2% of the global total), Poland (5.6%), Ukraine (4.3%), Lithuania (4.2%), Germany (2.8%), Kazakhstan (2.7%), mainland China (2%), Latvia (1.6%), Netherlands (1%), Uzbekistan (0.64%), Azerbaijan (0.61%) and United States of America (0.6%).
From a continental perspective, 88.5% of Belarusian exports by value were delivered to fellow European countries while 10% was sold to importers in Asia.
Belarus shipped another 0.8% worth of goods to North America. Even tinier percentages went to Africa (0.5%), Latin America (0.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania (0.01%) mostly Australia and New Zealand.
Given the Belarusian population of 9.1 million people, its total estimated US$6.9 billion in 2024 exports translates to roughly $750 for every resident in the Eastern European country. That dollar metric lags the average $1,200 per capita one year earlier during 2023.
Belarus Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Belarusian global shipments during 2024 at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Belarus.
- Fertilizers: US$1.2 billion (16.9% of total exports)
- Wood: $722.9 million (10.5%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $554.3 million (8.1%)
- Meat: $480 million (7%)
- Dairy, eggs, honey: $444.5 million (6.5%)
- Vehicles: $345.3 million (5%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $264.2 million (3.8%)
- Furniture, bedding, lighting, signs, prefab buildings: $224.7 million (3.3%)
- Gems, precious metals: $223.8 million (3.3%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: $212.5 million (3.1%)
The top 10 export product categories from Belarus exceeded two-thirds (67.5%) of the overall value of its global shipments.
Gems and precious metals represent the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 206.4% from 2023 to 2024.
In second place for improving export sales was wood via a 14.4% advance.
Belarus’ shipments of dairy, eggs and honey posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 11.4%.
The leading decliner among Belarus’ top 10 export categories was fertilizers, dragged down by a -43.5% year-over-year drop.
Products Generating Biggest Trade Surpluses for Belarus
The following types of Belarusian 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.
- Fertilizers: US$1.1 billion (Down by -43.9% since 2023)
- Wood: $702.6 million (Up by 15.3%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $537.5 million (Down by -0.6%)
- Meat: $442.2 million (Down by -10%)
- Dairy, eggs, honey: $437 million (Up by 12.6%)
- Gems, precious metals: $209.9 million (Up by 241.5%)
- Paper yarn, woven fabric: $98.9 million (Up by 48.3%)
- Meat/seafood preparations: $89.7 million (Up by 21.1%)
- Railways, streetcars: $65 million (Reversing a -$16 million deficit)
- Sugar, sugar confectionery: $60.9 million (Up by 104.1%)
Belarus has highly positive net exports in the international trade of fertilizers. In turn, these cashflows indicate Belarus’ strong competitive advantages under the fertilizers-related product category.
Products Causing Worst Trade Deficits for Belarus
Belarus incurred an estimated -US$10.3 billion trade deficit during 2024, expanding by 1% from -$10.2 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2023.
Below are exports from Belarus that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Belarus goods trail Belarusian importer spending on foreign products.
- Vehicles: -US$4.2 billion (Down by -11.5% since 2023)
- Machinery including computers: -$2.2 billion (Up by 6%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$1.4 billion (Down by -18.7%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$631.5 million (Up by 13.3%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$521.1 million (Down by -7.2%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: -$486.7 million (Up by 36%)
- Knit or crochet fabric: -$339.4 million (Down by -21.2%)
- Tanning, dyes, paints, varnishes, ink: -$319.7 million (Down by -7.2%)
- Other chemical goods: -$258.9 million (Up by 30.3%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$227.3 million (Up by 24.5%)
Belarus has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the vehicles product category, historically for cars and automotive parts or accessories.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Belarusian competitive disadvantages in the global machinery market, but also represent key opportunities for Belarus to improve its position in the global economy through focused innovations and trade alliances.
Belarusian Export Companies
Given that Belarus is an emerging economy, it should come as no surprise that no Belarusian corporation appears on the Forbes Global 2000.
Wikipedia does list Belarusian export companies. Selected examples are shown below.
- BelAZ (haulage, earth-moving equipment)
- Belkamunmash (electric public transport vehicles)
- Belshina (pneumatic tires)
- Beltransgaz (natural gas)
- Byelorussian Steel Works (steel)
- JSC Defense Systems (air defense manufacturer)
- Minsk Automobile Plant (automobiles)
- Minsk Motorcycle (motorcycles)
- Minsk Tractor Works (tractors)
- Olivaria (brewery)
- TransAVIAexport Airlines (cargo airline)
- Velcom (mobile phones)
In macroeconomic terms, Belarus’ total exported goods represent 2.3% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($295.6 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 2.3% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 compares to 3.2% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Belarus’ total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe and including estimates.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Unemployment in Belarus averaged 3.036% for 2024, down from an average 3.455% one year earlier in 2023 according to the International Monetary Fund statistics.
See also Belarus Top Trading Partners, Russia’s Top 10 Imports, Ukraine’s Top 10 Imports, Russia’s Top 10 Exports, European Union’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
EXCHANGE-RATES.org Belarusian Ruble (BYN) To US Dollar (USD), Exchange Rate History. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on January 9, 2026
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on January 9, 2026
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Wikipedia, Belarus. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Belarus. Accessed on January 9, 2026
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on January 9, 2026