Doris Dokua Sasu
Research Expert Ghana and Nigeria
EU-Africa trade - statistics and facts
The European Union's (EU’s) trade relationship with Africa is a complex tapestry of surpluses and deficits, with recent years revealing intriguing shifts in the balance of power. While the EU grapples with a substantial trade deficit with Africa, individual nations like Morocco are emerging as key players in this economic dance. Behind these headline figures lies a fascinating story of raw materials, particularly in the realm of mineral fuels and lubricants, where Africa's role in EU imports has been steadily growing. This further uncovers a narrative of interdependence, competition, and the ever-changing nature of international commerce.
Overall, from record-breaking deficits to changing import and export leaders, the EU-Africa trade dynamic offers a window into the evolving global economic landscape. In an international trade agreement between the two regions, they seek to sustain economic prosperity and development, among others, consequently breaking regional, people, and organizational borders.
Africa-EU trade surplus soars to record highs
Africa experienced a significant trade surplus with the EU in recent years, reaching an all-time high of over 55 billion euros in 2022. Although the value slightly decreased to nearly 35 billion euros in 2023, it still represents a substantial development in Africa’s trade relations with the EU. This surplus was largely driven by the category of mineral fuels, lubricants, and related materials, which accounted for a trade surplus of over 73.5 billion euros. Despite this overall positive trend, certain sectors showed negative trade balances for Africa, with machinery and transport equipment registering the highest deficit at around 27.3 billion euros, followed by chemicals and related products. In 2023, the total value of African exports to the EU marked a 14 percent decrease from the previous year’s figure of over 228.6 billion euros, with Algeria emerging as the leading exporter. Indeed, this decline in export trade aligns with recent developments in the trade balance of Africa with the EU.African countries and products in the EU economic partnership
Morocco emerged as the leading African importer of goods from the EU in 2023, with total merchandise imports amounting to just over 33 billion euros. South Africa, Egypt, and Algeria were other main importers. In the same year, Africa imported around 170.1 billion euros worth of goods from the EU, which represented a six percent decrease from the previous year. On the other hand, Algeria was at the forefront of goods exports to the EU, besides South Africa and Morocco. Particularly, Africa’s share in EU raw material trade has shown notable trends in recent years. As of 2023, Africa accounted for 9.7 percent of raw materials imported into the EU, marking a slight increase of 0.1 percentage points from the previous year. Notably, Africa's share in mineral fuels, lubricants, and related materials imported into the EU stood at 19.5 percent in 2023. This category has generally maintained a share between 15.8 percent and 19.5 percent since 2014, highlighting Africa's significant role in the EU's raw material trade, particularly in the mineral fuels and lubricants sector.Overall, from record-breaking deficits to changing import and export leaders, the EU-Africa trade dynamic offers a window into the evolving global economic landscape. In an international trade agreement between the two regions, they seek to sustain economic prosperity and development, among others, consequently breaking regional, people, and organizational borders.
