Lao PDR: Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2020, Lao PDR's merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports) rose 0 percentage points on 2019 (from 0.00562% to 0.00589%).

Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1983 to 2019), the average change was −0.19 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.98 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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 0.35 percentage points in 1984 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.94 percentage points in 1983. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2011 to 2020 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.00665 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 61% 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.

What this measures

Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East and North Africa are the sum of merchandise exports from the reporting economy to low- and middle-income economies in the Middle East and North 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 31 values

Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports) in nearby economies

• American Samoa — 0.79% (2023)
• Australia — 0.44% (2023)
• Brunei Darussalam — 0.000708% (2022)
• China — 2.23% (2023)
• Fiji — 0.02% (2017)
• French Polynesia — 0.000234% (2021)
• Hong Kong SAR, China

More private sector & trade data for Lao PDR

• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$10.34 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$12.38 billion (2025)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 17.45% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 81.87% (2023)
• Merchandise imports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise imports) — 0% (2023)
• Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$) — US$5.47 billion (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region (% of total merchandise imports) — 81.87% (2023)

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Questions people ask

What is Lao PDR's merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports)?

0.00589% in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is down 0.05 percentage points from 0.06% in 1970. The highest value was 5.01% in 1982 and the lowest 0.00332% in 2018.

Is the latest change in merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports) unusual for Lao PDR?

In 2020, Lao PDR's merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise exports) rose 0 percentage points on 2019 (from 0.00562% to 0.00589%). Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1983 to 2019), the average change was −0.19 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.98 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator TX.VAL.MRCH.R4.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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