Timor-Leste: Merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, Timor-Leste's merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) fell 8.3 percentage points on 2022 (from 51.5% to 43.21%).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2022), the average change was −2.04 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 25.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 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 70.51 percentage points in 2014 and the biggest yearly fall was 69.44 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 downward, about 5.11 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 83% 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

In 2023, Timor-Leste had the 155th highest value of the 205 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 Timor-Leste in the 2023 ranking

• Uganda — 152nd of 205: 45.49%
• El Salvador — 153rd of 205: 45.3%
• Aruba — 154th of 205: 43.9%
• Chile — 156th of 205: 42.89%
• Indonesia — 157th of 205: 42.67%
• Gabon — 158th of 205: 42.61%

What this measures

Merchandise exports to high-income economies are the sum of merchandise exports from the reporting economy to high-income economies according to the World Bank classification of economies. Data are expressed 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.

Limitations: Data on exports and imports are from the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Direction of Trade database and should be broadly consistent with data from other sources, such as the United Nations Statistics Division's Commodity Trade (Comtrade) database. All high-income economies and major low- and middle-income economies report trade data to the IMF on a timely basis, covering about 85 percent of trade for recent years. Trade data for less timely reporters and for countries that do not report are estimated using reports of trading partner countries. Therefore, data on trade between developing and high-income economies should be generally complete.

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

All 21 values

Merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) in nearby economies

• American Samoa — 73.16% (2023)
• Australia — 45.93% (2023)
• Brunei Darussalam — 61.34% (2023)
• Cambodia — 73.41% (2023)
• China — 65.68% (2023)
• Fiji — 63.28% (2023)
• French Polynesia — 87.12% (2023)
• Guam — 13.6% (2023)

More private sector & trade data for Timor-Leste

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 56.88% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$979 million (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$103 million (2025)
• Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise exports) — 2.15% (2023)
• Merchandise exports to low- and middle-income economies in Latin America & the Caribbean (% of total merchandise exports) — 0.27% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise exports) — 0% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy (current US$) — US$165.55 million (2023)
• Import unit value index (2015 = 100)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Timor-Leste's merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports)?

43.21% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2003?

It is down 47.13 percentage points from 90.34% in 2003. The highest value was 97.8% in 2014 and the lowest 8.98% in 2012.

How does Timor-Leste rank?

155th highest of 205 economies with data for 2023.

Is the latest change in merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) unusual for Timor-Leste?

In 2023, Timor-Leste's merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) fell 8.3 percentage points on 2022 (from 51.5% to 43.21%). Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2022), the average change was −2.04 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 25.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations below 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.HI.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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