Also known as maize, the value of globally exported corn expanded by an average 69.7% for all exporting countries since 2017 when corn shipments were valued at $30.3 billion.
From 2020 to 2021, the dollar amount reaped from globally exported corn accelerated by 39.5%.
The 5 biggest corn exporters (United States of America, Argentina, Ukraine, Brazil and Romania) generated well over three-quarters (78.2%) of overall sales for the popular grain commodity in 2021.
Among continents, countries in North America sold the highest dollar worth of exported corn during 2021 with shipments valued at $19.7 billion or 38.2% of the world total. Close behind in second place was Europe at 29.2% while 26.8% worth of the tasty grain originated from shippers in Latin America (26.8%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.
Smaller percentages came from Asia (3.7%), Africa (1.9%) and Oceania (0.1%) mostly Australia and New Zealand.
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix for corn is 1005.
Corn Exports by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of corn during 2021.
- United States: US$19.1 billion (37.2% of total corn exports)
- Argentina: $9.1 billion (17.6%)
- Ukraine: $5.9 billion (11.4%)
- Brazil: $4.2 billion (8.1%)
- Romania: $1.9 billion (3.8%)
- France: $1.9 billion (3.8%)
- Hungary: $1 billion (2%)
- India: $935.6 million (1.8%)
- South Africa: $809.3 million (1.6%)
- Russia: $694.2 million (1.4%)
- Poland: $633.8 million (1.2%)
- Serbia: $605.1 million (1.2%)
- Canada: $491.8 million (1%)
- Bulgaria: $486.4 million (0.9%)
- Myanmar: $483.6 million (0.9%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 93.9% of globally exported corn in 2021.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing corn suppliers from 2020 to 2021 were: India (up 140.3%), United States of America (up 99.6%), Canada (up 97.1%) and Poland (up 96.7%).
Three countries that posted year-over-year declines in their exported corn sales were: Brazil (down -28.4%), Serbia (down -6.1%) and Bulgaria (down -3.4%).
Countries Generating Highest Surpluses from Trading Corn
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for corn during 2021. 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 corn exports and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- United States: US$18.8 billion (net export surplus up 103.2% since 2020)
- Argentina: $9 billion (up 49.9%)
- Ukraine: $5.8 billion (up 20.7%)
- Brazil: $3.5 billion (down -38.8%)
- France: $1.6 billion (up 13.6%)
- Romania: $1.58 billion (up 82.1%)
- India: $921.4 million (up 183.9%)
- Hungary: $819.5 million (down -7.4%)
- South Africa: $778.2 million (up 47.2%)
- Serbia: $584.6 million (down -6.9%)
- Russia: $583.3 million (up 122.2%)
- Myanmar: $457 million (up 30.5%)
- Poland: $449 million (up 243.1%)
- Bulgaria: $411.8 million (down -7.9%)
- Paraguay: $329.7 million (up 21.6%)
The United States of America earned the highest surplus in the international trade of fresh corn. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms America’s strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Countries Incurring Greatest Deficits from Trading Corn
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for corn during 2021. 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 corn import purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- China: -US$7.6 billion (net export deficit up 204.7% since 2020)
- Mexico: -$5.1 billion (up 76.3%)
- Japan: -$4.74 billion (up 43.9%)
- South Korea: -$3.22 billion (up 36%)
- Egypt: -$2.4 billion (up 28.3%)
- Vietnam: -$2.3 billion (up 0.7%)
- Spain: -$2.1 billion (up 35.5%)
- Colombia: -$1.8 billion (up 45.4%)
- Iran: -$1.49 billion (down -40.8%)
- Netherlands: -$1.4 billion (up 29.1%)
- Taiwan: -$1.32 billion (up 49.1%)
- Italy: -$1.3 billion (up 13.7%)
- Malaysia: -$1.12 billion (up 42.2%)
- Peru: -$1.08 billion (up 43.2%)
- Algeria: -$823.5 million (down -1%)
Mainland China incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of fresh corn. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights Japan’s strong competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for corn-supplying countries that help satisfy powerful consumer demand.
Major Corn Exporting Companies
Below are corn-processing conglomerates that represent large players in the global corn market. Shown within parenthesis is the country where the company is headquartered.
- Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (United States)
- Bunge Limited (United States)
- Cargill, Inc (United States)
- Ingredion Incorporated (United States)
- Louis Dreyfus Holding B.V. (Netherlands)
- Mriya Agro Holding (Ukraine)
- SLC Agrícola (Brazil)
- Syngenta AG (Switzerland)
- Tate & Lyle Public Limited Company (United Kingdom)
- Vanguarda Agro (Brazil)
Searchable List of Corn Exporting Countries in 2021
The following 100 countries were responsible for 99.998% of total corn exports by value in 2021.
| Rank | Exporter | Corn Exports (US$) | 2020-1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | United States | $19,112,373,000 | +99.6% |
| 2. | Argentina | $9,064,172,000 | +49.9% |
| 3. | Ukraine | $5,854,587,000 | +19.9% |
| 4. | Brazil | $4,188,846,000 | -28.4% |
| 5. | Romania | $1,940,647,000 | +57.1% |
| 6. | France | $1,937,359,000 | +12.7% |
| 7. | Hungary | $1,045,652,000 | +2.9% |
| 8. | India | $935,608,000 | +140.3% |
| 9. | South Africa | $809,266,000 | +43.3% |
| 10. | Russia | $694,207,000 | +75.6% |
| 11. | Poland | $633,785,000 | +96.7% |
| 12. | Serbia | $605,082,000 | -6.1% |
| 13. | Canada | $491,818,000 | +97.1% |
| 14. | Bulgaria | $486,382,000 | -3.4% |
| 15. | Myanmar | $483,590,000 | +26.4% |
| 16. | Paraguay | $409,076,000 | +26.9% |
| 17. | Austria | $281,551,000 | -1.2% |
| 18. | Germany | $271,005,000 | +68% |
| 19. | Croatia | $245,745,000 | +8.3% |
| 20. | Slovakia | $185,343,000 | +26.4% |
| 21. | Turkey | $143,575,000 | +18.6% |
| 22. | Moldova | $127,207,000 | +59.9% |
| 23. | Netherlands | $120,238,000 | -42.1% |
| 24. | Thailand | $110,663,000 | +56.5% |
| 25. | Czech Republic | $109,681,000 | +88.6% |
| 26. | Pakistan | $106,846,000 | +745.4% |
| 27. | Tanzania | $91,546,000 | +282.6% |
| 28. | Spain | $87,130,000 | -7.9% |
| 29. | Italy | $86,422,000 | +58.3% |
| 30. | Chile | $82,585,000 | -10.6% |
| 31. | Slovenia | $80,972,000 | +49.2% |
| 32. | Belgium | $69,597,000 | +73.1% |
| 33. | Vietnam | $67,164,000 | -47.3% |
| 34. | Mexico | $60,925,000 | -72.2% |
| 35. | Zambia | $46,836,000 | +12.4% |
| 36. | United Kingdom | $34,553,000 | +12.8% |
| 37. | Australia | $30,946,000 | +77.2% |
| 38. | Ireland | $30,595,000 | +33.6% |
| 39. | Portugal | $27,897,000 | -12.1% |
| 40. | Lithuania | $25,770,000 | -44% |
| 41. | Peru | $22,736,000 | -2.6% |
| 42. | Kazakhstan | $21,840,000 | +40.5% |
| 43. | Laos | $17,909,000 | -49.1% |
| 44. | Bolivia | $17,165,000 | +97.1% |
| 45. | Belarus | $11,196,000 | +58.6% |
| 46. | Latvia | $8,775,000 | +14.8% |
| 47. | Kenya | $7,970,000 | -33.9% |
| 48. | Luxembourg | $6,076,000 | +14.3% |
| 49. | Denmark | $6,030,000 | -66% |
| 50. | Greece | $5,718,000 | +3.5% |
| 51. | China | $5,621,000 | +31.5% |
| 52. | Yemen | $5,045,000 | -25% |
| 53. | Colombia | $4,773,000 | +43.7% |
| 54. | New Zealand | $4,569,000 | +42.2% |
| 55. | Indonesia | $4,235,000 | -74.4% |
| 56. | Malaysia | $3,720,000 | +8.8% |
| 57. | Honduras | $3,532,000 | -15% |
| 58. | Guatemala | $3,516,000 | +183.5% |
| 59. | El Salvador | $3,488,000 | +96.7% |
| 60. | Philippines | $3,054,000 | -36.3% |
| 61. | Zimbabwe | $2,760,000 | -53.5% |
| 62. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $2,678,000 | +32% |
| 63. | Azerbaijan | $2,630,000 | 00% |
| 64. | Burkina Faso | $2,153,000 | -89.7% |
| 65. | Egypt | $1,962,000 | -25.1% |
| 66. | Bhutan | $1,674,000 | 0% |
| 67. | Belize | $1,503,000 | +120.7% |
| 68. | Ecuador | $1,486,000 | +11,331% |
| 69. | Namibia | $1,384,000 | +2371% |
| 70. | Mozambique | $1,244,000 | +481% |
| 71. | Kyrgyzstan | $1,094,000 | +255.2% |
| 72. | Georgia | $967,000 | +55.5% |
| 73. | Malawi | $954,000 | -10% |
| 74. | Sudan | $878,000 | +698.2% |
| 75. | Ghana | $875,000 | -42.3% |
| 76. | Cyprus | $830,000 | 0% |
| 77. | Antigua/Barbuda | $814,000 | 0% |
| 78. | United Arab Emirates | $753,000 | -97.2% |
| 79. | Uganda | $711,000 | -98.9% |
| 80. | North Macedonia | $694,000 | -79.7% |
| 81. | Sweden | $586,000 | +28.5% |
| 82. | Mali | $527,000 | -30.9% |
| 83. | Dominican Republic | $484,000 | -34.4% |
| 84. | Cambodia | $456,000 | -7.3% |
| 85. | Switzerland | $381,000 | +122.8% |
| 86. | Estonia | $324,000 | +75.1% |
| 87. | Djibouti | $290,000 | 0% |
| 88. | Somalia | $273,000 | +27200% |
| 89. | Syria | $255,000 | +3088% |
| 90. | Tunisia | $242,000 | 0% |
| 91. | Brunei Darussalam | $182,000 | +1555% |
| 92. | Jordan | $175,000 | -90.8% |
| 93. | Nigeria | $170,000 | 0% |
| 94. | Benin | $153,000 | +1600% |
| 95. | Botswana | $139,000 | -65.1% |
| 96. | Singapore | $125,000 | -68.1% |
| 97. | Senegal | $85,000 | -74.9% |
| 98. | Trinidad/Tobago | $84,000 | -22.2% |
| 99. | Uzbekistan | $77,000 | 0% |
| 100. | Japan | $77,000 | +541.7% |
| South Korea | $74,000 | +5.7% |
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the above columns. Note that an entry of 0% in the right-most column means no 2020 data was available at time of article publication.
Expanding the scope to the top 100 corn exporters, the fastest-growing shippers of corn by value from 2020 to 2021 are Somalia (up 27,200%), Ecuador (up 11,331%), Syria (up 3,088%), Namibia (up 2,371%), Benin (up 1,600%), Brunei Darussalam (up 1,555%), Pakistan (up 745.4%) and Sudan (up 698.2%).
Top 10 Exporters of Corn by Shipment Weight
The worldwide total of exported corn equaled 195 billion tons in 2021. That shipment weight reflects a 3.5% increase from 2020 to 2021 and a 23.5% gain since 2017.
- United States: 70,042,258 tons (35.9% of global corn exports)
- Argentina: 39,947,476 tons (20.5%)
- Ukraine: 24,539,481 tons (12.6%)
- Brazil: 20,429,565 tons (10.5%)
- Romania: 6,903,281 tons (3.5%)
- France: 4,285,081 tons (2.2%)
- India: 3,615,752 tons (1.9%)
- South Africa: 3,327,246 tons (1.7%)
- Russia: 2,936,351 tons (1.5%)
- Serbia: 2,291,408 tons (1.2%)
The greatest growth in terms of shipment weight from 2020 to 2021 were posted by India (up by 104.6%), United States of America (up 35%), South Africa (up 28.7%), Russia (up 28.3%) and Romania (up 22.2%).
Average Prices for Top 10 Corn Exporters
Overall, the world’s average price for exported corn in 2021 was US$263.7 per ton. That dollar metric represents a 34.8% increase from the average $195.6 per ton one year earlier in 2020.
Presented below are the average prices per ton for each of the biggest corn exporters. This list is ordered by volume starting with countries shipping the greatest total tons.
- United States of America: US$273 per ton (up 47.6% from 2020)
- Argentina: $227 per ton (up 38.4%)
- Ukraine: $239 per ton (up 36.6%)
- Brazil: $205 per ton (up 20.6%)
- Romania: $281 per ton (up 28.3%)
- France: $452 per ton (up 19.6%)
- India: $259 per ton (up 17.7%)
- South Africa: $243 per ton (up 11.5%)
- Russia: $236 per ton (up 36.4%)
- Serbia: $264 per ton (up 42.7%)
The most expensive average prices among the above major corn suppliers come from France and Romania.
The least costly sources are the South American countries Brazil and Argentina.
The fastest-growing average prices originate from the United States (up 47.6% from 2020 to 2021) and Serbia
Average prices rose at the slowest pace for corn exported from South Africa (up 11.5%) and India (up 17.7%).
See also Corn Imports by Country, Wheat Exports by Country, Soya Beans Exports by Country and Top Sweet Pepper and Chili Pepper Exports
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on May 17, 2022
Genetic Literacy Project, World’s largest corn producer sues Syngenta over Chinese rejection of GMO corn. Accessed on May 17, 2022
Hoovers, Company information. Accessed on May 17, 2022
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on May 17, 2022
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on May 17, 2022
Wikipedia, Category: Agriculture companies by country. Accessed on May 17, 2022
Wikipedia, Maize. Accessed on May 17, 2022
