€36 billion transport services trade surplus in 2024

In 2024, EU countries exported €258.7 billion worth of transport services to countries outside the EU, while imports were valued at €222.4 billion. This resulted in a €36.3 billion trade surplus for the EU.

Compared with 2023, both exports and imports increased, by 3.6% and 4.7%, respectively. This indicates a period of stabilisation after the steep increase in the value of transport services in 2022, driven by the soaring energy prices.

There is a persistent surplus in transport services for the entire period 2014-2024, highlighting that the EU is an important player in international transport services.

Source dataset: bop_its6_det

Most of the traded transport services relate to sea transport (52.4% of exports and 44.6% of imports) and air transport (27.7% of exports and 29.7% of imports). Other transport services accounted for 15.3% of exports and 21.6% of imports, while postal and courier services accounted for 4.6% of exports and 4.1% of imports.

Main trade partners: the United States and the United Kingdom

In 2024, most of the transport service exports went to the United States (€45.9 billion, 17.8% of the total), the United Kingdom (€35.6 billion, 13.7%), and Switzerland (€21.4 billion, 8.3%). China except Hong Kong (€20.5 billion, 7.9%) and Singapore (€11.2 billion, 4.3%) made up the rest of the top 5.

The same top 5 partners were among the suppliers, with the United States coming in first (€35.6 billion, 16.0%), followed by the United Kingdom (€24.1 billion, 10.8%) and China except Hong Kong (€16.9 billion, 7.6%). Switzerland (€15.1 billion, 6.8%) and Singapore (€11.9 billion, 5.3%) completed the list.

Source dataset: bop_its6_det