International trade

World services exports reached $7.9 trillion in 2023 and grew by 8.3 per cent annually. International travel receipts increased by 34 per cent, reaching over $1.5 trillion. Transport exports suffered an 11 per cent decline in 2023. Other services – most of which can be traded digitally – recorded a strong annual growth of over 8 per cent. After the COVID-19 pandemic plunge in 2020, years 2021 and 2022 witnessed a strong recovery in the international trade of, firstly, transport services, and then travel. In 2023, services exports represented 26 per cent of global exports of both goods and services.

Looking at the trends by development status and region, services exports marked a solid growth in all groups of economies in 2023 (between 6.7 and 12.2 per cent annual rise). The growth of services imports varied more, from a modest 0.8 per cent in Africa to a strong 11 per cent in developing Asia and Oceania. While in most areas, imports increased more than exports, the latter grew significantly faster than imports in Africa and in Latin America and the Caribbean (developing Americas).

With over $1 trillion worth of services sold internationally in 2023, the United States remained the world’s leading exporter, capturing a 13 per cent share of the global market. It was followed, at some distance, by the United Kingdom ($584 billion) and Germany ($439 billion). China, the leading exporter among developing economies, ranked fifth ($381 billion). The top five services exporters from the developing world were all Asian. In 2023, they captured 17 per cent of the global market and accounted for 56 per cent of developing economies’ total services exports.