That projected dollar amount reflects a 15% increase compared to $64.5 billion 5 years earlier in 2019.
Year over year, the overall value of Kuwaiti exported products shrank by -25.7% compared to $99.8 billion starting from 2022.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2023, the Kuwaiti dinar weakened by -1.2% against the US dollar since 2019 and diluted by -0.3% from 2022 to 2023. Kuwait’s weaker local currency made Kuwaiti exports paid for starting from stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Kuwait’s top 3 most valuable exports are crude oil, processed petroleum oils, and petroleum gases. Collectively, that trio of main exports accounted for 93.2% of Kuwaiti export sales for 2023. Such a high percentage testifies to Kuwait’s intensely concentrated portfolio of exported products.
Given Kuwait’s population of 4.96 million people, its total $74.2 billion in 2023 exports translates to roughly $15,000 for every resident in the Middle Eastern country. That dollar metric lags the average $18,800 per capita one year earlier for 2022.
Kuwait’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Kuwaiti global shipments during 2023 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 Kuwait.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$69.5 billion (93.7% of total exports)
- Organic chemicals: $2 billion (2.7%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: $626 million (0.8%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $496.9 million (0.7%)
- Aircraft, spacecraft: $431.1 million (0.6%)
- Iron, steel: $184.4 million (0.2%)
- Ships, boats: $178.9 million (0.2%)
- Copper: $100.7 million (0.1%)
- Aluminum: $100 million (0.1%)
- Machinery including computers: $81.5 million (0.1%)
Kuwait’s top 10 export categories accounted for 99.4% of the overall value of its global shipments.
Aircraft and spacecraft was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 29,012% from 2022 to 2023.
In second place for improving export sales was the salt, sulphur, stone and cement product category via a 21,791% advance.
Kuwait’s shipments of ships and boats posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 4,390%.
The leading decliner among Kuwait’s top 10 export categories was machinery including computers, pulled down by a -64.3% year-over-year drop.
At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, the top 10 most valuable export products are led by crude oil which represents Kuwait’s 57% of the country’s total international sales. In second place were processed petroleum oils (31.7%) trailed by petroleum gases 4.5%), cyclic hydrocarbons (1.8%), acyclic alcohols (0.8%), non-sublimed sulphur (0.7%), ethylene polymers (0.6%), aircraft and spacecraft (0.5%), petroleum oil residues (also 0.5%), then cruise or cargo ships and barges (0.2%).
Products Generating Kuwait’s Largest Trade Surpluses
Overall Kuwait achieved an estimated US$48.8 billion trade surplus for 2023, reducing by -23.6% from $63.8 billion in black ink one year earlier.
The following types of Kuwaiti 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.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$68.7 billion (Down by -26.9% since 2022)
- Organic chemicals: $1.8 billion (Up by 6%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $476.3 million (Reversing a -$510.6 million deficit)
- Plastics, plastic articles: $124.8 million (Reversing a -$355.9 million deficit)
- Ores, slag, ash: $18.4 million (Reversing a -$4.5 million deficit)
- Copper: $15.9 million (Reversing a -$217.1 million deficit)
- Woodpulp: $7.7 million (Reversing a -$4.7 million deficit)
- Raw hides, skins not furskins, leather: $896,000 (Up by 366.7%)
Kuwait has highly positive net exports in the international trade of petroleum oils (both crude and refined) as well as petroleum gases. In turn, these cashflows indicate Kuwait’s strong competitive advantages under the mineral fuels-related product category.
Products Causing Kuwait’s Worst Trade Deficits
Below are exports from Kuwait that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Kuwait’s goods trail Kuwaiti importer spending on foreign products.
- Vehicles: -US$5.2 billion (Up by 29% since 2022)
- Machinery including computers: -$2.6 billion (Down by -12.3%)
- Aircraft, spacecraft: -$1.4 billion (Up by 1,717%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$1.39 billion (Down by -57%)
- Articles of iron or steel: -$1 billion (Down by -26.1%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$846.1 million (Down by -46.1%)
- Optical, technical, medical apparatus: -$680.5 million (Down by -13.4%)
- Furniture, bedding, lighting, signs, prefabricated buildings: -$558.4 million (Down by -3.5%)
- Meat: -$537.5 million (Down by -31.2%)
- Cereals: -$459.3 million (Down by -36.6%)
Kuwait has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits notably caused by purchases of imported vehicles especially cars.
Kuwaiti Export Companies
Four Kuwaiti corporations rank among the Forbes Global 2000.
- National Bank of Kuwait (financials)
- Kuwait Finance House (financials)
- Zain (telecommunications)
- Kuwait Projects (financials)
Wikipedia also lists exporters from Kuwait. Selected examples are shown below.
- Afco Aluminium Factory (aluminum)
- Gulfsat (telecommunications)
- Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (petroleum)
- Kuwait National Petroleum Company (petrochemicals)
- Kuwait Oxygen And Acetylene Company (chemicals)
- Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (petroleum)
- Qualitynet (telecommunications)
- United Fisheries of Kuwait (food)
In macroeconomic terms, Kuwait’s total exported goods represent 28.3% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2023 ($261.8 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 28.3% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2023 compares to 36.5% for 2022. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Kuwait’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Kuwait’s unemployment rate averaged 2.1% in 2023, falling below the average 2.2% jobless rate in 2022 according to Trading Economics statistics.
Kuwait’s capital city is Kuwait City.
See also Crude Oil Exports by Country, Saudi Arabia’s Top 10 Exports, India’s Top Trading Partners, Qatar’s Top 10 Exports and China’s Top Trading Partners
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on October 9, 2024
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates (Domestic Currency, Period Average). Accessed on October 9, 2024
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on October 9, 2024
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Wikipedia, Kuwait. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Kuwait. Accessed on October 9, 2024
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on October 9, 2024