Chinas Top 10 Exports

AUGUST 3, 2016 BY DANIEL WORKMAN

by Flagpictures.org
Exports from China amounted to US$2.282 trillion in 2015, up 20.2% since 2011 but down -2.6%
from 2014 to 2015. Chinas top 10 exports accounted for 67.6% of the overall value of its global
shipments.
Based on statistics from the International Monetary Funds World Economic Outlook Database,
Chinas total Gross Domestic Product amounted to $19.51 trillion in 2015.
Therefore, exports accounted for about 11.7% of total Chinese economic output.
From a continental perspective, 50.3% of Chinese exports by value are delivered to Asian
countries while 20.8% are sold to other Asian importers. China ships another 17.7% worth to
North American clients and 4.8% arriving in Africa.
Given Chinas population of 1.367 billion people, its total $2.282 trillion in 2015 exports translates
to roughly $1,669 for every resident in that country.
Chinas unemployment rate was 4.05% as of December 2015 according to Trading Economics.
Chinas Top 10 Exports
Top 10
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Chinese global shipments
during 2015. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of
overall exports from China.
1. Electronic equipment: US$600.3 billion (26.3% of total exports)
2. Machines, engines, pumps: $364.5 billion (16%)
3. Furniture, lighting, signs: $98.7 billion (4.3%)
4. Knit or crochet clothing: $83.8 billion (3.7%)
5. Clothing (not knit or crochet): $78.5 billion (3.4%)
6. Medical, technical equipment: $73.8 billion (3.2%)
7. Plastics: $65.8 billion (2.9%)
8. Vehicles: $62.7 billion (2.7%)
9. Iron or steel products: $60.6 billion (2.7%)
10. Footwear: $53.6 billion (2.3%)
Furniture, lighting and signs were the fastest-growing among the top 10 export categories, up
66.4% for the 5-year period starting in 2011.
In second place for improving export sales were plastics which rose 44.9%.
Chinese electronic equipment posted the third-fastest gain in value at 34.7%, followed by footwear
up by 28.5%.
The slowest-growing among the top 10 Chinese exports was machinery which appreciated a tepid
3% and knit or crochet clothing which was up by 4.6%.
Advantages
The following types of Chinese product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance
surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a countrys total exports minus the value
of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports is the amount by which foreign spending on a home countrys goods or
services exceeds or lags the home countrys spending on foreign goods or services.
1. Machines, engines, pumps: US$207.3 billion (Up by 34.2% since 2011)
2. Electronic equipment: $168.7 billion (Up by 77.9%)
3. Furniture, lighting, signs: $95.5 billion (Up by 68.9%)
4. Knit or crochet clothing: $81.5 billion (Up by 3.2%)
5. Clothing (not knit or crochet): $74.8 billion (Up by 23.3%)
6. Footwear: $50.9 billion (Up by 26.6%)
 7. Iron or steel products: $50.5 billion (Up by 23.3%)
8. Toys, games: $40.9 billion (Up by 24.3%)
9. Iron and steel: $31 billion (Up by 169.6%)
10. Leather, animal gut articles: $29 billion (Up by 15.1%)
China has highly positive net exports in the international trade of machinery including computers.
In turn, these cashflows indicate Chinas strong competitive advantages under the machinery
product category.
Opportunities
Below are exports from China that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits.
These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country
Chinas goods trail Chinese importer spending on foreign products.
1. Oil: -US$170.7 billion (Down by -29.9% since 2011)
2. Ores, slag, ash: -$94.8 billion (Down by -36.8%)
3. Oil seed: -$36.9 billion (Up by 24.4%)
4. Copper: -$32.8 billion (Down by -31%)
5. Medical, technical equipment: -$25.9 billion (Down by -32.5%)
6. Aircraft, spacecraft: -$24.5 billion (Up by 105.9%)
7. Woodpulp: -$17.9 billion (Down by -4%)
8. Pharmaceuticals: -$12.3 billion (Up by 149.4%)
9. Cereals: -$9 billion (Up by 541.5%)
10. Animal/vegetable fats and oils: -$7.2 billion (Down by -34.3%)
China has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits for fossil
fuels, particularly crude petroleum oils.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Chinas competitive disadvantages in the international
energy market, but also represent key opportunities for China to improve its position in the global
economy through focused innovations.
Companies
Chinese Export Companies
China placed 149 corporations on the Forbes Global 2000 for 2015. Below is a sample of the major
Chinese export companies that Forbes included:
PetroChina (oil, gas)
Sinopec-China Petroleum (oil, gas)
SAIC Motor (cars, trucks)
Dongfeng Motor Group (cars, trucks)
BYD (cars, trucks)
Gree Electric Appliances (household appliances)
Midea Group Co. Ltd. (household appliances)
Tsingtao Brewery (beverages)
Sinopharm Group (pharmaceuticals)
Aluminum Corporation of China (aluminum)
Dongfang Electric (electrical equipment)
According to global trade intelligence firm Zepol, the following smaller companies are also
examples of leading Chinese exporters:
APLL (beddings, clothing)
UPS SCS China (chairs, beddings)
Winners Products Engineering (cooking appliances, sheets, charcoal)
Maersk Logistics China (footwear, bedding, clothing)
Carven Industries (furniture, building stone)

Chinas capital city is Beijing.

Please note that the results listed above are at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level.

See also Chinas Top 10 Major Export Companies, Chinas Top Import Partners, Highest
Value Chinese Export Products and Top Chinese Trade Balances

Research Sources:
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power
Parity). Accessed on March 22, 2016

The World Factbook, Country Profiles, Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on March 22, 2016

Trade Map, International Trade Centre. Accessed on March 22, 2016

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on March 22, 2016

Wikipedia, List of Companies of China. Accessed on March 22, 2016

Forbes 2015 Global 2000 rankings, The Worlds Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on March 22,
2016

Zepols company summary highlights by country. Accessed on March 22, 2016