Overall, the value of plastic items exports rose by an average 20% for all exporting countries since 2015 when plastic items shipments were valued at $66.5 billion. Year over year, the value of exported plastic items appreciated by 0.5% from 2018 to 2019.
From a continental perspective, European countries sold the highest value worth of exported plastic articles on international markets via a 43.1% increase. Close behind was Asia at 42.8%, trailed by North American suppliers at 12.6%.
Smaller percentages came from Latin America (0.6%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, Africa (also 0.6%) then Oceania (0.2%) led by Australia and New Zealand.
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 3926 for articles made from plastics.
Plastic Item Exports by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of plastic items during 2019.
- China: US$21.4 billion (26.8% of total plastic items exports)
- Germany: $9.6 billion (12%)
- United States: $6.9 billion (8.7%)
- Italy: $3.3 billion (4.1%)
- France: $2.9 billion (3.7%)
- Netherlands: $2.6 billion (3.2%)
- Poland: $2.3 billion (2.9%)
- Japan: $2.2 billion (2.7%)
- Mexico: $2 billion (2.5%)
- Czech Republic: $1.9 billion (2.4%)
- Taiwan: $1.72 billion (2.1%)
- Hong Kong: $1.69 billion (2.1%)
- South Korea: $1.6 billion (1.9%)
- United Kingdom: $1.5 billion (1.9%)
- Belgium: $1.4 billion (1.8%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 78.9% of globally exported plastic items in 2019.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing exporters of plastic items since 2015 were: Poland (up 66.1%), Netherlands (up 58.2%), South Korea (up 33.7%) and Czech Republic (up 33.3%).
Two countries posted declines in their exported plastic items sales: Taiwan (down -10.9%) and Hong Kong (down -8.1%).
Searchable List of Plastic Items Exporting Countries in 2019
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the columns below. An entry of 0% in the right-most column means that no 2018 data was available.
| Rank | Exporter | Plastic Item Exports (US$) | 2018-9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | China | $21,439,700,000 | +9.9% |
| 2. | Germany | $9,575,967,000 | -4.3% |
| 3. | United States | $6,913,056,000 | -4.4% |
| 4. | Italy | $3,272,997,000 | -2.7% |
| 5. | France | $2,930,455,000 | -2.3% |
| 6. | Netherlands | $2,560,107,000 | +2.7% |
| 7. | Poland | $2,309,641,000 | +0.8% |
| 8. | Japan | $2,153,724,000 | -0.6% |
| 9. | Mexico | $1,964,899,000 | +0.2% |
| 10. | Czech Republic | $1,937,587,000 | -2% |
| 11. | Taiwan | $1,716,473,000 | -2.9% |
| 12. | Hong Kong | $1,688,991,000 | +0.8% |
| 13. | South Korea | $1,551,120,000 | -5% |
| 14. | United Kingdom | $1,534,795,000 | -3.9% |
| 15. | Belgium | $1,432,302,000 | -1.7% |
| 16. | Austria | $1,421,939,000 | -0.4% |
| 17. | Canada | $1,165,223,000 | -10.1% |
| 18. | Thailand | $1,052,444,000 | -9.2% |
| 19. | Spain | $1,040,860,000 | +3.6% |
| 20. | Vietnam | $1,029,093,000 | +5.2% |
| 21. | Hungary | $914,976,000 | +0.2% |
| 22. | Switzerland | $832,214,000 | -7.7% |
| 23. | Malaysia | $767,276,000 | +11.3% |
| 24. | Singapore | $733,415,000 | -5.5% |
| 25. | Sweden | $711,959,000 | -0.1% |
| 26. | Slovakia | $689,457,000 | -2.4% |
| 27. | India | $638,496,000 | +8.4% |
| 28. | Denmark | $620,473,000 | -2% |
| 29. | Romania | $482,207,000 | +3.8% |
| 30. | Portugal | $464,034,000 | -2.2% |
| 31. | Turkey | $428,978,000 | +3.3% |
| 32. | Israel | $416,029,000 | -7.5% |
| 33. | Slovenia | $369,032,000 | +4.1% |
| 34. | Tunisia | $232,751,000 | -1.4% |
| 35. | Ireland | $194,279,000 | -5.3% |
| 36. | Finland | $176,335,000 | -12.1% |
| 37. | Lithuania | $175,538,000 | +13.2% |
| 38. | Indonesia | $158,551,000 | +21.5% |
| 39. | Philippines | $148,444,000 | +3.6% |
| 40. | Dominican Republic | $131,974,000 | +222.3% |
| 41. | Australia | $126,431,000 | +13.1% |
| 42. | Brazil | $126,342,000 | -5.1% |
| 43. | Russia | $123,562,000 | +15.4% |
| 44. | Estonia | $99,082,000 | +2% |
| 45. | Bulgaria | $98,043,000 | +5.5% |
| 46. | Costa Rica | $94,424,000 | +10.7% |
| 47. | South Africa | $94,258,000 | -8.2% |
| 48. | Morocco | $86,849,000 | +39.9% |
| 49. | Luxembourg | $63,103,000 | +16% |
| 50. | Greece | $61,535,000 | +24.8% |
| 51. | New Zealand | $58,291,000 | +4.7% |
| 52. | Latvia | $57,592,000 | +8.7% |
| 53. | Myanmar (Burma) | $56,128,000 | +7,315% |
| 54. | Norway | $52,986,000 | -3.4% |
| 55. | Croatia | $47,443,000 | +3.8% |
| 56. | Serbia | $43,907,000 | +7.9% |
| 57. | Belarus | $43,166,000 | -7% |
| 58. | Pakistan | $40,632,000 | +461.7% |
| 59. | United Arab Emirates | $38,944,000 | -84.9% |
| 60. | El Salvador | $36,367,000 | +120.5% |
| 61. | Colombia | $33,570,000 | +17.6% |
| 62. | Nepal | $33,423,000 | +9.1% |
| 63. | Malta | $30,539,000 | +2.5% |
| 64. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $29,832,000 | +61.1% |
| 65. | Ukraine | $28,179,000 | -7.4% |
| 66. | Egypt | $25,088,000 | -69.6% |
| 67. | Cambodia | $23,258,000 | +194.7% |
| 68. | Guatemala | $18,096,000 | +30.1% |
| 69. | Sri Lanka | $17,870,000 | -3% |
| 70. | Argentina | $17,409,000 | -15.2% |
| 71. | Oman | $15,871,000 | -9.9% |
| 72. | Moldova | $15,242,000 | +730.2% |
| 73. | Bangladesh | $15,165,000 | +60.7% |
| 74. | Honduras | $14,316,000 | +157.9% |
| 75. | Panama | $12,373,000 | -10% |
| 76. | Chile | $11,129,000 | -36.6% |
| 77. | Peru | $10,053,000 | +3.9% |
| 78. | Saudi Arabia | $6,523,000 | -79% |
| 79. | Kazakhstan | $6,440,000 | +35.9% |
| 80. | Iran | $5,757,000 | -97.5% |
| 81. | North Macedonia | $4,015,000 | +1.6% |
| 82. | Albania | $3,843,000 | +476.2% |
| 83. | Ecuador | $3,661,000 | -37% |
| 84. | Georgia | $3,496,000 | +113.2% |
| 85. | Cyprus | $2,821,000 | +33.9% |
| 86. | Mauritius | $2,654,000 | +114% |
| 87. | Zambia | $2,643,000 | +31.4% |
| 88. | Ghana | $2,114,000 | -51% |
| 89. | Lebanon | $1,950,000 | -29.7% |
| 90. | Uruguay | $1,786,000 | +33.3% |
| 91. | Lesotho | $1,518,000 | -15.9% |
| 92. | Paraguay | $1,367,000 | -11.7% |
| 93. | Jordan | $1,328,000 | -96.4% |
| 94. | Barbados | $1,138,000 | +34.8% |
| 95. | North Korea | $1,118,000 | +57.5% |
| 96. | Iceland | $1,088,000 | -63.5% |
| 97. | Bahrain | $1,021,000 | -63.4% |
| 98. | Laos | $999,000 | +7,585% |
| 99. | Namibia | $838,000 | +35.2% |
| 100. | Armenia | $756,000 | -16.8% |
| 101. | Kenya | $746,000 | -70% |
| 102. | Senegal | $723,000 | +21.3% |
| 103. | Nicaragua | $709,000 | -12.4% |
| 104. | Uzbekistan | $673,000 | +46% |
| 105. | Mongolia | $664,000 | +751.3% |
| 106. | Andorra | $493,000 | +259.9% |
| 107. | US Minor Outlying Is | $491,000 | +679.4% |
| 108. | Kuwait | $419,000 | -92.1% |
| 109. | Qatar | $415,000 | -15.1% |
| 110. | Afghanistan | $404,000 | 0% |
| 111. | Madagascar | $384,000 | +48.3% |
| 112. | Belize | $365,000 | -46.8% |
| 113. | Faroe Islands | $337,000 | -28.5% |
| 114. | Ivory Coast | $317,000 | -89.1% |
| 115. | Trinidad/Tobago | $317,000 | -92.2% |
| 116. | Kyrgyzstan | $276,000 | -78.9% |
| 117. | Mozambique | $269,000 | +65% |
| 118. | Azerbaijan | $257,000 | +60.6% |
| 119. | Haiti | $224,000 | +30.2% |
| 120. | Zimbabwe | $218,000 | -0.5% |
| 121. | Syria | $215,000 | -84.2% |
| 122. | Botswana | $182,000 | -83% |
| 123. | Fiji | $178,000 | -65.8% |
| 124. | Venezuela | $168,000 | -92.8% |
| 125. | Aruba | $160,000 | +492.6% |
| 126. | Cameroon | $159,000 | -67.3% |
| 127. | Montenegro | $145,000 | +38.1% |
| 128. | Cabo Verde | $143,000 | 0% |
| 129. | Seychelles | $139,000 | +101.4% |
| 130. | Dominica | $131,000 | -58.5% |
| 131. | Bolivia | $123,000 | -58.3% |
| 132. | Nauru | $123,000 | +186% |
| 133. | Curaçao | $122,000 | -66% |
| 134. | Togo | $120,000 | -51% |
| 135. | Anguilla | $107,000 | +4.9% |
| 136. | Macao | $107,000 | 0% |
| 137. | Malawi | $101,000 | -29.4% |
| 138. | Sierra Leone | $100,000 | 0% |
| 139. | Ethiopia | $98,000 | -86.2% |
| 140. | Eswatini | $93,000 | -17.7% |
| 141. | Angola | $90,000 | -72% |
| 142. | Iraq | $86,000 | -72.7% |
| 143. | Djibouti | $73,000 | +3,550% |
| 144. | Jamaica | $70,000 | -87.3% |
| 145. | Guinea | $63,000 | +57.5% |
| 146. | Algeria | $62,000 | -12.7% |
| 147. | St Vincent/Grenadines | $61,000 | +916.7% |
| 148. | Northern Mariana Is | $51,000 | +1,600% |
| 149. | Rwanda | $48,000 | -82% |
| 150. | Turks/Caicos Islands | $48,000 | -90.2% |
| 151. | Samoa | $45,000 | -96.6% |
| 152. | Niger | $42,000 | -73.8% |
| 153. | Papua New Guinea | $34,000 | -74.8% |
| 154. | Tokelau | $32,000 | +220% |
| 155. | Chad | $30,000 | -31.8% |
| 156. | Nigeria | $29,000 | 0% |
| 157. | Mauritania | $28,000 | +1,300% |
| 158. | French Polynesia | $28,000 | +16.7% |
| 159. | Brunei Darussalam | $28,000 | -84.4% |
| 160. | Mali | $27,000 | -72.2% |
| 161. | Suriname | $27,000 | +92.9% |
| 162. | Tanzania | $27,000 | -95.7% |
| 163. | British Virgin Is | $25,000 | -70.9% |
| 164. | Gabon | $25,000 | -35.9% |
| 165. | Bermuda | $24,000 | -71.1% |
| 166. | Turkmenistan | $21,000 | -54.3% |
| 167. | Marshall Islands | $21,000 | +250% |
| 168. | Timor-Leste | $18,000 | +80% |
| 169. | New Caledonia | $16,000 | -85.3% |
| 170. | Burkina Faso | $16,000 | +77.8% |
| 171. | Democr. Rep. Congo | $15,000 | -74.6% |
| 172. | Antigua/Barbuda | $14,000 | -12.5% |
| 173. | Liberia | $14,000 | -30% |
| 174. | Uganda | $14,000 | -97.1% |
| 175. | South Sudan | $13,000 | +116.7% |
| 176. | Christmas Island | $13,000 | -13.3% |
| 177. | Bahamas | $11,000 | -99.9% |
| 178. | Congo | $10,000 | -66.7% |
| 179. | Norfolk Island | $10,000 | -78.3% |
| 180. | Cook Islands | $9,000 | 0% |
| 181. | Cayman Islands | $9,000 | -77.5% |
| 182. | Niue | $9,000 | -78% |
| 183. | Libya | $8,000 | 0% |
| 184. | Gibraltar | $8,000 | +166.7% |
| 185. | Bhutan | $8,000 | +60% |
| 186. | Yemen | $8,000 | -11.1% |
| 187. | Sao Tome/Principe | $7,000 | +250% |
| 188. | French S./Antarctic Terr | $7,000 | -84.4% |
| 189. | Maldives | $7,000 | -68.2% |
| 190. | Kiribati | $6,000 | 0% |
| 191. | Guyana | $5,000 | -90.9% |
| 192. | Grenada | $5,000 | -28.6% |
| 193. | Cocos (Keeling) Is | $5,000 | -91.8% |
| 194. | Cuba | $4,000 | -80% |
| 195. | Central African Rep | $4,000 | 0% |
| 196. | Palestine | $4,000 | -99.8% |
| 197. | Montserrat | $4,000 | -50% |
| 198. | Gambia | $3,000 | 0% |
| 199. | Saint Helena | $3,000 | -98.3% |
| 200. | Saint Lucia | $2,000 | -89.5% |
| 201. | Vanuatu | $2,000 | -80% |
| 202. | Tajikistan | $2,000 | -60% |
| 203. | Benin | $2,000 | -98.7% |
| 204. | Equatorial Guinea | $2,000 | -66.7% |
| 205. | American Samoa | $1,000 | -50% |
| 206. | Greenland | $1,000 | 0% |
| 207. | St Maarten (Dutch) | $1,000 | 0% |
| 208. | Sudan | $1,000 | -95.8% |
| 209. | Tuvalu | $1,000 | -92.3% |
| 210. | Saint Kitts/Nevis | $1,000 | -66.7% |
See also Top Cork Exporting Countries, Sawn Wood Exports by Country and Top Stainless Steel Exporters by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Imports – Commodities. Accessed on May 11, 2020
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on May 11, 2020
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on May 11, 2020
