Merchandise trade in Zambia
Zambia: Merchandise trade was 91.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Merchandise trade in Zambia, 1960–2025
Source: World Trade Organization (WTO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, merchandise trade in Zambia stood at 91.7%.
That represents a change of up 2.9% on the previous year and up 34.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise trade in Zambia peaked at 107.8% in 1971 and was at its lowest, 40.3%, in 1997.
Zambia ranks 33rd of 204 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 79.6% | 74.5% | 83.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 71.8% | 52.4% | 107.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 60.4% | 50.8% | 74.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 52.7% | 40.3% | 76.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 53.8% | 49.1% | 61.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 67.6% | 61.0% | 75.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 80.1% | 70.8% | 91.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More private sector data for Zambia
- Merchandise exports 13.31 billion current US$ (2025)
- Manufactures exports 14.1% (2024)
- Food exports 8.7% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 13.17 billion current US$ (2025)
- Manufactures imports 64.4% (2024)
- Food imports 7.8% (2024)
- Commercial service exports 1.38 billion current US$ (2024)
- Transport services 48.3% (2024)
- Computer, communications and other services 31.6% (2024)
- Commercial service imports 1.96 billion current US$ (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise trade in Zambia?
- Merchandise trade in Zambia was 91.7% in 2025, according to World Trade Organization (WTO).
- What is the highest merchandise trade recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 107.8% in 1971.
- What is the lowest merchandise trade recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.3% in 1997.
- How does Zambia rank for merchandise trade?
- Zambia ranks 33rd out of 204 countries with data for 2025.
- Is merchandise trade rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from World Trade Organization (WTO), published as part of Merchandise trade (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General merchandise trade includes goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e. It is the total of merchandise exports plus merchandise imports. 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.