
New Hampshire’s biggest export in 2020 was aircraft including engines and other parts, accounting for 16.9% of the state’s aggregated exports revenue. In addition to those aircraft shipments, the state’s other top 3 exports were mixed medicines not in dosage and office machine parts or accessories representing a combined 26.2% of the state’s total. Those commodities suggest a relatively diversified range of exported goods.
New Hampshire ranks among America’s 40 biggest exporters by state lagging front-runners including Texas, California, New York and Louisiana. The value of New Hampshire’s exports equals 0.4% of United States’ overall exported products for 2020.
Based on statistics from the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), New Hampshire’s exported products represent 6.4% of the state’s total economic output or real Gross Domestic Product in 2020 ($85.1 billion in current dollars based on BEA statistics). That percentage compares with 6.6% one year earlier.
Given New Hampshire’s population of 1.368 million people, its total $5.5 billion in 2020 exports translates to roughly $4,000 for every resident in the Granite State.
New Hampshire’s unemployment rate was 3% at March 2021, down from 16% in April 2020 per YCharts.
New Hampshire’s Top 10 Exports
Top 10
The following export products represent the highest dollar value in New Hampshire global shipments during 2020. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from New Hampshire.
Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.
- Aircraft including engines, parts: US$920 million (16.9% of New Hampshire’s total exports)
- Mixed medicines (not in dosage): $327 million (6%)
- Office machine parts and accessories: $182 million (3.3%)
- TV reception/transmission equipment parts: $173 million (3.2%)
- Cell phones: $168 million (3.1%)
- Machine tool parts, accessories: $151 million (2.8%)
- Small portable digital computers: $128 million (2.3%)
- Revolvers, pistols: $103 million (1.9%)
- Antennas, reflectors including parts: $100 million (1.8%)
- Turbo-jet parts: $95 million (1.7%)
New Hampshire’s top 10 exports accounted for 43% of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.
Small portable digital computers were the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 652.9% from 2019 to 2020. In second place for improving export sales were revolvers and pistols which rose 281.5%. New Hampshire’s shipments of antennas and reflectors including parts posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 203%.
There were two decliners year over year among New Hampshire’s top 10 export products. Exports of aircraft including engines and other parts fell -31.7% while shipments of machine tool parts or accessories dropped -3.2%.
More Key Facts
New Hampshire racked up an overall -$1.5 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2020. That dollar amount reflects a -68.4% annual reduction from -$4.7 billion in red ink in 2019.
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.
Below are New Hampshire’s top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2020.
- Turbo-jet parts: $1.6 billion (23.4% of New Hampshire’s total imports)
- Miscellaneous petroleum oils: $290 million (4.2%)
- Plastic plates, sheets, foil, film, strips: $194 million (2.8%)
- Footwear covering ankle (rubber/plastic/ leather outer soles): $159 million (2.3%)
- Modems, similar reception/transmission devices: $148 million (2.1%)
- Gears, gearing: $107 million (1.5%)
- Integrated circuits (processors/controllers): $85 million (1.2%)
- Petroleum bitumen: $76 million (1.1%)
- Medical/dental/veterinarian instruments: $75 million (1.1%)
- Miscellaneous optical devices $66 million (0.9%)
New Hampshire has highly negative net exports in the international trade of petroleum oils and turbo-jet parts. In turn, these cashflows indicate New Hampshire’s competitive disadvantages under those product categories.
Partners
The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchased about two-thirds (67.3%) worth of the total value of products exported from New Hampshire during 2020.
- Germany: $751 million (13.8% of New Hampshire’s total exports)
- Canada: $660 million (12.1%)
- Ireland: $392 million (7.2%)
- Japan: $352 million (6.5%)
- United Arab Emirates: $348 million (6.4%)
- Mexico: $342 million (6.3%)
- China: $334 million (6.1%)
- Hong Kong: $188 million (3.4%)
- Netherlands: $160 million (2.9%)
- Norway: $139 million (2.6%)
New Hampshire’s top trade partners in North America (Canada and Mexico) bought 18.4% of the overall value of exported goods from the Granite State. That percentage lags the 26.5% share for major suppliers from Europe (Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway).
Companies
New Hampshire Export Companies
Two New Hampshire-based corporations rank among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses. These are listed below.
- PC Connection (computer hardware, software, services)
- Sprague Resources LP (petroleum, natural gas)
Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the international trade-related products or services which each business sells.
New Hampshire’s capital is Concord, a city named to reflect the “concord” (harmonious agreement) in 1765 resolving a bitter dispute over land boundaries.
See also America’s Top 20 Export States, United States Top 10 Exports and Top United States Trade Balances
Research Sources:
Department of Numbers, New Hampshire GDP (dollars shown in real terms). Accessed on April 25, 2021
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on April 25, 2021
Forbes, 2017 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on April 25, 2021
GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2017 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on April 25, 2021
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on April 25, 2021
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on April 25, 2021
State Symbols USA, State Nicknames. Accessed on April 25, 2021
United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade (State by 6-Digit HS Code). Accessed on April 25, 2021
United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: New Hampshire. Accessed on April 25, 2021
Wikipedia, Categories:Companies based in New Hampshire. Accessed on April 25, 2021
Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on April 25, 2021
Wikipedia, New Hampshire. Accessed on April 25, 2021
World’s Capital Cities, Capital Facts for Concord, United States. Accessed on April 25, 2021
YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on April 25, 2021