Greenland: Imports of goods and services (% of GDP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Greenland's imports of goods and services (% of GDP) fell 1.48 percentage points on 2022 (from 52.58% to 51.09%).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2022), the average change was +0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 11.38 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 21.39 percentage points in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 29.08 percentage points in 2012. 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 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.67 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 42% of the movement over 10 observed years.

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

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Greenland in the 2023 ranking

• United Arab Emirates — 1st of 3: 92.2%
• Togo — 3rd of 3: 35.35%

What this measures

Imports of goods includes change in the economic ownership of goods from non-residents to residents of the compiling economy, irrespective of physical movement of goods across national borders. Imports of services includes services provided by non-residents to residents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.

Limitations: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on exports and imports are compiled from customs reports and balance of payments data.

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

All 21 values

Imports of goods and services (% of GDP) in nearby economies

• Albania — 42.52% (2025)
• Armenia — 53.61% (2025)
• Austria — 52.32% (2025)
• Azerbaijan — 36.81% (2025)
• Belarus — 57.03% (2025)
• Belgium — 77.47% (2025)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 54.12% (2025)
• Bulgaria — 51.78% (2025)
• Croatia — 53.01% (2025)
• Cyprus — 91.92% (2025)

More economic policy & debt data for Greenland

• GDP (current US$) — US$3.33 billion (2023)
• GDP (current LCU) — 22.92 billion (2023)
• GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$2.84 billion (2023)
• GDP (constant LCU) — 16.26 billion (2023)
• GDP per capita (current US$) — US$58,499 (2023)
• GDP per capita (current LCU) — 403,041 (2023)
• GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$49,930 (2023)
• GDP per capita (constant LCU) — 285,947 (2023)
• GDP (annual % growth) — 0.87% (2023)
• GDP per capita (annual % growth) — 0.5% (2023)
• Adjusted savings, carbon dioxide damage (current US$)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Greenland's imports of goods and services (% of GDP)?

51.09% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2003?

It is up 1.59 percentage points from 49.5% in 2003. The highest value was 92.55% in 2011 and the lowest 43.52% in 2017.

Is the latest change in imports of goods and services (% of GDP) unusual for Greenland?

In 2023, Greenland's imports of goods and services (% of GDP) fell 1.48 percentage points on 2022 (from 52.58% to 51.09%). Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2022), the average change was +0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 11.38 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs); National Accounts data files, Central Banks; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NE.IMP.GNFS.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs); National Accounts data files, Central Banks; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) 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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