An Oceanian island group about 3,200 kilometers (1,988.4 miles) northeast of New Zealand, the Independent State of Samoa shipped US$41.9 million worth of exported products around the world in 2024.

That annual dollar amount results from a 12.1% advance from $37.4 million 5 years earlier in 2020.

Year over year, the overall value of Samoan exports retreated via a -2.4% slowdown compared to $42.9 million starting from 2023.

Nicknamed the Crade of Polynesia, Samoa broke away from its formal dependence on New Zealand on 1962 after over a century of foreign influence. Nevertheless, Samoa remains a member of the British Commonwealth.

The top 5 most valuable exported products from Samoa in 2024 were processed petroleum oil, insulated wire or cable, coconut oil, optical-fiber cables and sheets, then electric circuit parts or fuses and switches.

Samoa’s Major Trading Partners

The latest available country-specific data shows that 96.6% of products exported from Samoa was bought by importers in: Singapore (28.5% of the Samoan total), New Zealand (17.6%), United States of America (13.4%), Australia (10.9%), Tokelau (8.7%), American Samoa (4.7%), Solomon Islands (4.3%), Fiji (2.7%), Cook Islands (2%), mainland China (1.5%), Taiwan (1.3%) and Japan (1.1%).

From a continental perspective, 51.5% of Samoa’s exports by value was delivered to fellow Oceanian countries led by New Zealand, Australia, Tokelau and American Samoa.

Meanwhile 34.1% was sold to importers in Asia. Samoa shipped another 13.4% worth of goods to buyers in North America (mostly United States but also Canada).

Smaller percentages went to customers located in Europe (0.9%) and Latin America’s Cayman Islands (0.1%).

Given Samoa’s population of 211,000 people, its total $41.9 million in 2024 exports translates to roughly $200 for every resident in the South Pacific Ocean island group. That dollar metric lags the average $210 per capita one year earlier during 2023.

Samoa’s Top 10 Exports

The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Samoan global shipments during 2024. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Samoa.

1. Mineral fuels including oil: US$13.9 million (33.3% of total exports)
2. Electrical machinery, equipment: $12.8 million (30.6%)
3. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $3.6 million (8.5%)
4. Optical, technical, medical apparatus: $1.8 million (4.4%)
5. Vegetables: $1.1 million (2.6%)
6. Fish: $845,000 (2%)
7. Beverages, spirits, vinegar: $756,000 (1.8%)
8. Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $700,000 (1.7%)
9. Dairy, eggs, honey: $589,000 (1.4%)
10. Iron, steel: $563,000 (1.3%)

Samoa’s top 10 export product categories generated 87.6% of the overall value of its global shipments.

Optical, technical and medical apparatus represents the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 11,394% from 2023 to 2024.

In second place for improving export sales was electrical machinery and equipment via a 213.2% advance.

Samoa’s shipments of beverages, spirits and vinegar posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 64.7%.

The leading decliner among Samoa’s top 10 export categories was fish, thanks to an -88.1% year-over-year drop.

At the more granular four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, processed petroleum oils represent Samoa’s most valuable exported product at 33.2% of the country’s total. In second place was insulated wire or cable (22.6%), coconut oil (8.4%), optical-fiber cables, sheets or plates (4.3%), electric circuit parts, fuses and switches (3.5%), phone devices including smartphones (3.2%), manioc roots or Jerusalem artichokes and sweet potatoes (2.5%), frozen whole fish (1.9%), fruit or vegetable juices (1.6%), then malt beer (1.4%).

Products Generating Samoa’s Best Trade Surpluses

The following types of Samoan 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.

1. Miscellaneous base metals: US$1,000 (Reversing a -$7,000 deficit for 2023)

Samoa has only one slim positive net export.

Products Causing Samoa’s Worst Trade Deficits

Samoa incurred an overall -US$448.3 million product trade deficit for 2024, expanding by 4.1% from -$430.6 million in red ink one year earlier for 2023.

Below are exports from Samoa that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Samoa’s goods trail Samoan importer spending on foreign products.

1. Mineral fuels including oil: -US$82.7 million (Down by -8.7% from 2023)
2. Meat: -$38.3 million (Up by 12.1%)
3. Vehicles: -$37.4 million (Up by 19.6%)
4. Machinery including computers: -$29.3 million (Up by 24.1%)
5. Electrical machinery, equipment: -$16.9 million (Up by 27.1%)
6. Cereal/milk preparations: -$16.1 million (Up by 0.8%)
7. Dairy, eggs, honey: -$16 million (Down by -10.6%)
8. Wood: -$13.3 million (Up by 12.5%)
9. Plastics, plastic articles: -$11.2 million (Down by -4.7%)
10. Articles of iron or steel: -$10.9 million (Down by -4.9%)

Historically, Samoa has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits particularly for refined petroleum oils and, to a lesser degree, petroleum gas under the mineral fuels-related category.

Samoan Export Companies

Not one Samoan corporation ranks among Forbes Global 2000.

The registered companies listing maintained by Samoa’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Labour records exports-related companies from Samoa. Selected examples are shown below.

• APIA Export Fisheries Ltd (fishing, aquaculture)
• CJ Exports & Imports Ltd (furniture)
• Health Seafood Export Limited (fishing, aquaculture)
• Maiden Agricultural Trade & Export (food product manufacturer)
• Samoa Export Co Ltd (agriculture, fishing)
• Sea & Lagoon Export Ltd (fishing, aquaculture)

 
In macroeconomic terms, Samoa’s total exported goods represent 2.8% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2024 ($1.493 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 2.8% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2024 compares to 3.3% for 2023. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Samoa’s total economic performance, albeit based on a relatively short timeframe.

Another key economic indicator is a country’s unemployment rate. Samoa’s unemployment rate averaged 4.551% in 2024, down from the average 4.977% jobless rate for 2023.

Samoa’s capital city is Apia.

See also Australia’s Top 10 Exports, New Zealand’s Top 10 Exports and Top Oceanian Export Countries

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Australia-Oceania: Samoa. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on November 9, 2025

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on November 9, 2025

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Samoa’s Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Labour, Samoa Company Registry. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Wikipedia, Flag of Samoa. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on November 9, 2025

Wikipedia, Samoa. Accessed on November 9, 2025