Nicknamed “The Natural State” and previously “The Bear State” located in America’s southeastern region, Arkansas shipped US$5.6 billion worth of products around the globe in 2021.

That dollar amount reflects a -16.6% drop from $6.45 billion four year earlier in 2018.

Year over year, the overall value of Arkansan exports rose 7.9% compared to $5.19 billion during 2020.

Looking ahead to 2022, the value of Arkansan exports from January to August 2022 totaled $3.95 billion. The dollar sum for exports from Arkansas is projected to be an annualized $5.93 billion, expanding 5.7% versus the $5.6 billion for 2021.

Arkansas ranks among America’s 40 biggest exporters by state behind front-runners including Texas, California, New York and Louisiana. The value of Arkansas’ exports equals 0.3% of United States’ overall exported products for 2021.

Based on statistics from the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), exported products from Arkansas represent 3.9% of the state’s total economic output or real Gross Domestic Product in 2021 ($144.5 billion in current dollars based on BEA statistics).

Given Arkansas’ population of 3.026 million people, its total $5.6 billion in 2021 exports translates to roughly $1,850 for every resident in the Natural State. That dollar metric surpasses the average $1,700 per capita one year earlier in 2020.

Arkansas’ unemployment rate was 3.4% at the end of August 2022, down from 4.5% at February 2021 per YCharts.

Top 10 Exports from Arkansas

The following export products represent the highest dollar value in Arkansas global shipments during 2021. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Arkansas.

Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.

1. Aircraft including engines, parts: US$838.2 million (15% of Arkansas’ total exports)
2. Bombs, grenades, mines, missiles: $352.1 million (6.3%)
3. Milled rice: $200.4 million (3.6%)
4. Eggs: $196.8 million (3.5%)
5. Paper, paperboard with plastic: $131.8 million (2.4%)
6. Cotton (uncarded, uncombed): $127.7 million (2.3%)
7. Fresh or chilled poultry (cuts, offal): $115.3 million (2.1%)
8. Frozen poultry (cuts, offal): $110.6 million (2%)
9. Vulcanized rubber plates, sheets: $91.2 million (1.6%)
10. Vehicle suspension shock absorbers: $85.1 million (1.5%)

Arkansas’ top 10 exports accounted for 40.1% of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.

Weaponry including bombs, grenades, mines and missiles represent the fastest grower among the state’s top 10 export categories, accelerating by 169.7% from 2020 to 2021. In second place for improving export sales was fresh or chilled poultry cuts and offal (up 65.1%), ahead of motor vehicle suspension shock absorbers (up 16.5%) and eggs (up 16.1%).

Posting year-over-year declines among Arkansas’ top 10 export products were frozen poultry cuts and offal (down -29%), full aircraft plus aircraft engines or other engine parts (down -18%) and paper or paperboard with plastic (down -14%).

More Key Facts about Arkansan International Trade

Arkansas incurred an overall -$4.29 billion deficit exporting and importing products during 2021. That dollar amount results from a 24.7% year-over-year increase from -$3.44 billion in red ink for 2020.

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 Arkansas’ top 10 import products highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2021.

1. Medium-size aircraft: $417.1 million (4.2% of Arkansas’ total imports)
2. Large aircraft: $340.3 million (3.4%)
3. Wheeled toys including tricycles, scooters, pedal cars: $310.2 million (3.1%)
4. Footwear (rubber/plastic outer soles and uppers): $185.9 million (1.9%)
5. Unalloyed aluminum (unwrought): $181.1 million (1.8%)
6. Footwear (textile uppers): $179.8 million (1.8%)
7. Small portable digital computers: $157.6 million (1.6%)
8. Bombs, grenades, mines, missiles: $132.7 million (1.3%)
9. Miscellaneous weapons other than side arms: $119.9 million (1.2%)
10. Road tractors for semi-trailers: $92.7 million (0.9%)

Arkansas has negative net exports in the international trade of wheeled toys, footwear and small portable digital computers. In turn, these cashflows indicate Arkansas’ competitive disadvantages under those product categories.

Major Arkansan Trading Partners

The following list shows the top 10 customers that purchased well over two-thirds (70.3%) worth of the total value of products exported from Arkansas during 2021.

1. Canada: $1.27 billion (22.6% of Arkansas’ total exports)
2. Mexico: $982.7 million (17.5%)
3. United Kingdom: $361.6 million (6.5%)
4. Japan: $343.1 million (6.1%)
5. China: $262.9 million (4.7%)
6. France: $217.9 million (3.9%)
7. Netherlands: $133.1 million (2.4%)
8. Germany: $129.2 million (2.3%)
9. Saudi Arabia: $128.5 million (2.3%)
10. South Korea: $112.2 million (2%)

Arkansas’ top trade partners in North America (Canada and Mexico) bought about two-fifths (40.2%) of the overall value of exported goods from the Natural State.

In contrast, leading trade partners in Europe (United Kingdom, France, Netherlands and Germany) purchased 15% worth.

Arkansan Export Companies

Eight Arkansas-based corporations rank among Fortune 1000 Companies, a list that showcases America’s largest businesses. Selected examples are listed below.

• ArcBest Corp (freight forwarding, transport logistics)
• J.B. Hunt (trucking, transport services)
• Murphy Oil Corp (petroleum, natural gas)
• Tyson Foods (food processing, marketing)
• Windstream (voice/data network communications)

Shown within brackets for each company is a summary of the international trade-related products or services which each business sells.
 

Arkansas’ capital is Little Rock, a city nicknamed “LR”, “Rock Town” and “The Rock”.

See also Ohio’s Top 10 Exports, Alaska’s Top 10 Exports, Oregon’s Top 10 Exports, Louisiana’s Top 10 Exports and Washington State’s Top 10 Exports

Research Sources:
Department of Numbers, Arkansas GDP (dollars shown in real terms). Accessed on October 20, 2022

FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on October 20, 2022

Forbes, 2018 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on October 20, 2022

GeoLounge, Fortune 1000 Companies List for 2018 , Fortune 1000 by State and Place. Accessed on October 20, 2022

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on October 20, 2022

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on October 20, 2022

State Symbols USA, State Nicknames. Accessed on October 20, 2022

United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Arkansas. Accessed on October 20, 2022

USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on October 20, 2022

Wikipedia, Arkansas. Accessed on October 20, 2022

Wikipedia, List of Arkansas Companies. Accessed on October 20, 2022

Wikipedia, List of U.S. states and territories by GDP. Accessed on October 20, 2022

World’s Capital Cities, Capital Facts for Little Rock, United States. Accessed on October 20, 2022

YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on October 20, 2022