That dollar amount reflects a 10.1% year-over-year increase from $3.1 billion in 2021.
Over a 3-year period, the overall value of Maine’s exports rose 25.6% compared to $2.72 billion during 2019.
Maine ranks among America’s 50 biggest exporters by state behind front-runners including Texas, California, New York and Washington states. The value of Maine’s exports equals 0.2% of United States’ overall exported products.
Maine’s exported products represent 5.45% of the state’s total economic output or Gross Domestic Product in 2022 ($62.7 billion).
The most valuable products shipped from Maine are natural gas in gaseous state, civilian aircraft including engines or other parts, and fresh or chilled lobsters. Collectively, those leading product categories generated almost a third (32.4%) of Maine’s overall export sales during 2022..
Given Maine’s population of 1.383 million people, its total $3.42 billion in 2022 exports translates to about $2,500 for every resident in the Pine Tree State. That dollar metric surpasses the average $2,250 per capita one year earlier for 2021.
Maine’s unemployment rate was 2.9% in January 2023, down from 3.6% one year earlier per YCharts.
Maine’s Top 10 Exports
The following export products represent the highest dollar value in Maine global shipments during 2022. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Maine.
Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.
- Natural gas (gaseous state): US$471.3 million (13.8% of Maine’s total exports)
- Civilian aircraft including engines, parts: $332.9 million (9.7%)
- Fresh/chilled lobsters: $305.1 million (8.9%)
- Miscellaneous electronic integrated circuits: $175.5 million (5.1%)
- Large powered aircraft excluding helicopters and dirigibles: $112.9 million (3.3%)
- Fresh/chilled Atlantic or Danube salmon: $106.1 million (3.1%)
- Paper, paperboard for writing, printing and graphics: $101.4 million (3%)
- Diagnostic or laboratory reagents: $78.1 million (2.3%)
- Fir and spruce rough wood: $72.6 million (2.1%)
- Plastics-coated paper, paperboard: $66.6 million (1.9%)
Maine’s top 10 exports accounted for over half (53.3%) of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.
The fastest grower among Maine’s leading export product categories is natural gas in a gaseous state via a 161.5% spike from 2021.
In second place were Maine’s exports of fresh or chilled Atlantic and Danube salmon (up 58.8%), paper and paperboard covered or coated with plastics (up 53.9%), then paper and paperboard for writing, printing and graphics (up 50.3%).
The severest product decliner from 2021 to 2022 were Maine’s signature fresh or chilled lobsters weighted down by a -40.3% drop.
More Key Facts about Maine’s International Trade
Maine incurred an overall -$4.73 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2022. That dollar amount reflects a 44.1% year-over-year expansion from -$3.28 billion in red ink for 2021.
Another way of saying surplus or deficit is positive or negative net exports. In a nutshell, the term “net exports” quantifies the amount by which foreign spending on a state’s goods or services exceeds or lags that same state’s spending on foreign goods or services.
In total, importers in Maine spent $8.15 billion on goods supplied by providers outside the United States.
Below are Maine’s top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2022.
- Light petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: US$1.79 billion (21.9% of Maine’s total imports)
- Refined petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: $1.65 billion (20.2%)
- Electrical energy: $337.3 million (4.1%)
- Sawn coniferous wood: $220.1 million (2.7%)
- Fresh/chilled lobsters: $148.4 million (1.8%)
- Chemical woodpulp sulfite (coniferous): $148.3 million (1.8%)
- Liquefied Propane: $147.9 million (1.8%)
- Miscellaneous plastic items: $141.9 million (1.7%)
- Chemical woodpulp soda or sulphate (coniferous): $118 million (1.4%)
- Footwear with rubber sole, leather upper: $82.7 million (1%)
Maine has negative net exports in the international trade of petroleum products and electrical energy–importing much of its electrical power from Canada. In turn, these cashflows indicate Maine’s competitive disadvantages under those product categories.
Maine’s Top Trading Partners
The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchased over three-quarters (76.8%) worth of the total value of products exported from Maine during 2022.
- Canada: US$1.83 billion (53.6% of Maine’s total exports)
- China: $139.6 million (4.1%)
- Algeria: $114.2 million (3.3%)
- Malaysia: $113 million (3.3%)
- Netherlands: $90.3 million (2.6%)
- Japan: $88.6 million (2.6%)
- Mexico: $78 million (2.3%)
- Philippines: $57.5 million (1.7%)
- South Korea: $57.3 million (1.7%)
- Belgium: $56.6 million (1.7%)
Maine’s top trade partners in North America–mostly Canada but also Mexico–bought over half (55.9%) of the overall value of exported goods from the Pine Tree State.
In contrast, leading importers in Asia (mainland China, Malaysia, Japan, Philippines, South Korea) accounted for 13.3% of Maine’s export sales in 2022.
Maine Export Companies
Not one Maine-based corporation ranks among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses.
According to Zippia, below are examples of relatively large companies based in Maine.
- LL Bean (clothing, shoes, outdoor gear)
- IDEXX Laboratories (animal health diagnostic goods, services)
- Ahlstrom-Munksjö (fiber-based source materials)
- WEX Inc. (payment processing, info technology)
- Cherryfield Foods (canned fruits, vegetables)
Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the international trade-related products or services which each business sells.
Maine’s capital is Augusta, a city named after Augusta Dearborn who was the daughter of America’s Revolutionary War soldier and statesman Henry Dearborn.
See also Florida’s Top 10 Exports, California’s Top 10 Exports, Top 10 Exports from Texas and Hawaii’s Top 10 Exports
Research Sources:
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Forbes, 2019 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on March 16, 2023
GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2019 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on March 16, 2023
IBIS World, State Economic Profile (including GDP). Accessed on March 16, 2023
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on March 16, 2023
State Symbols USA, State Nicknames. Accessed on March 16, 2023
United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade (State by 6-Digit HS Code). Accessed on March 16, 2023
United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Maine. Accessed on March 16, 2023
USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Wikipedia, Category:Companies based in Maine. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Wikipedia, Maine. Accessed on March 16, 2023
World’s Capital Cities, Capital Facts for Augusta, United States. Accessed on March 16, 2023
YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on March 16, 2023
Zippia, These are the 100 largest companies in Maine. Accessed on March 16, 2023
