Belgium: Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise exports)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Belgium's merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise exports) fell 0.45 percentage points on 2022 (from 3.06% to 2.61%).

Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1998 to 2022), the average change was +0.07 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.25 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.83 percentage points in 2022 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.45 percentage points in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 2% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2023, Belgium had the 69th highest value of the 196 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Belgium in the 2023 ranking

• Türkiye — 65th of 196: 2.88%
• Tunisia — 66th of 196: 2.68%
• Saudi Arabia — 67th of 196: 2.64%
• Gambia, The — 69th of 196: 2.47%
• Latvia — 70th of 196: 2.43%
• Seychelles — 71st of 196: 2.42%

What this measures

Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa are the sum of merchandise exports from the reporting economy to low- and middle-income economies in the Sub-Saharan Africa region according to World Bank classification of economies. Data are as a percentage of total merchandise exports by the economy. Data are computed only if at least half of the economies in the partner country group had non-missing data.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 27 values

Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise exports) in nearby economies

• Albania — 0.05% (2023)
• Armenia — 0.00435% (2023)
• Austria — 0.69% (2023)
• Azerbaijan — 0.00585% (2023)
• Belarus — 0.11% (2023)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 0.24% (2023)
• Bulgaria

More private sector & trade data for Belgium

• Agricultural raw materials imports (% of merchandise imports) — 1.01% (2025)
• Food imports (% of merchandise imports) — 12.82% (2025)
• Fuel imports (% of merchandise imports) — 14.56% (2025)
• Manufactures imports (% of merchandise imports) — 65.82% (2025)
• Ores and metals imports (% of merchandise imports) — 4.99% (2025)
• Agricultural raw materials exports (% of merchandise exports) — 1.17% (2025)
• Food exports (% of merchandise exports) — 13.81% (2025)
• Fuel exports (% of merchandise exports) — 10.2% (2025)
• Manufactures exports (% of merchandise exports) — 69.37% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Belgium's merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise exports)?

2.61% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1997?

It is up 1.41 percentage points from 1.19% in 1997. The highest value was 3.06% in 2022 and the lowest 0.95% in 2003.

How does Belgium rank?

69th highest of 196 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Sub-Saharan Africa (% of total merchandise exports) unusual for Belgium?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator TX.VAL.MRCH.R6.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB); Direction of Trade database, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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