UK trade: March 2024

• The value of goods imports decreased by £1.2 billion (2.5%) in March 2024, because of falls in imports of machinery and transport equipment and fuels.

• The value of goods exports decreased by £0.4 billion (1.3%) in March 2024, with a fall in exports to non-EU countries partially offset by a rise in exports to the EU.

• There is no evidence that recent disruption to shipping in the Middle East and Red Sea has affected UK imports in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024.

• The total goods and services trade deficit narrowed by £4.7 billion to a deficit of £7.8 billion in Quarter 1 2024, and has been steadily reducing since Quarter 1 2022.

• The trade in goods deficit narrowed by £3.1 billion to £45.9 billion in Quarter 1 2024, linked to a substantial decrease in imports of machinery and transport equipment.

• The trade in services surplus is estimated to have widened by £1.6 billion to £38.1 billion in Quarter 1 2024, with increases in exports of travel and transport services.

Total imports of goods in "current prices", which are not adjusted for inflation (explained in Section 12: Glossary), decreased by £1.2 billion (2.5%) in March 2024. Imports from the EU fell by £1.0 billion (3.8%), and imports from non-EU countries decreased by £0.2 billion (0.9%) (Table 1 and Figure 1).

Total exports of goods decreased by £0.4 billion (1.3%) in March 2024, because of a £0.6 billion (4.0%) fall in exports to non-EU countries, while exports to the EU increased by £0.2 billion (1.6%).

Imports from the EU were £5.2 billion higher than from non-EU countries in March 2024, while exports to the EU were £0.4 billion lower than exports to non-EU countries.

Figure 1: Imports from the EU fell in March 2024, while exports to the EU increased slightly

EU and non-EU goods imports and exports, excluding precious metals, current prices, seasonally adjusted, March 2021 to March 2024

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After removing the effect of inflation by calculating "chained volume measures" (explained in Section 12: Glossary), total goods imports decreased by £1.1 billion (2.8%) in March 2024 (Figure 2). Imports from the EU fell by £1.2 billion (5.3%) while imports from non-EU countries rose by £0.1 billion (0.6%).

Total goods exports fell by £0.1 billion (0.3%) in March 2024, after the effect of inflation was removed. This was because exports to non-EU countries decreased by £0.2 billion (1.4%), while exports to the EU increased by £0.1 billion (0.9%).

Figure 2: In both value and inflation adjusted terms, imports from the EU fell in March 2024

Imports and exports of goods, excluding precious metals, current prices and chained volume measures, seasonally adjusted, EU and non-EU, March 2021 to March 2024

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Goods imports

Imports from the EU decreased by £1.0 billion (3.8%) in March 2024. This was mainly because of a £0.9 billion fall in machinery and transport equipment imports, primarily decreased imports of ships from Italy and aircraft from France (Figure 3).

Imports from non-EU countries fell by £0.2 billion (0.9%) in March 2024. This was mainly because of a £0.5 billion fall in imports of fuels, which was partially offset by a £0.3 billion increase in imports of machinery and transport equipment.

The fall in fuel imports was because of reduced imports of crude oil from the United States, and refined oil from Kuwait. The rise in imports of machinery and transport equipment was because of increased imports of cars from China and aircraft from the United States.

While there has been recent disruption to shipping in the Middle East and Red Sea, with ships re-routing around the Cape of Good Hope, as explained in our bulletin on shipping crossing through global maritime passages, there is no evidence that this has affected UK imports in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024.

Figure 3: Imports from the EU fell in March 2024, because of a substantial fall in imports of machinery and transport equipment

EU and non-EU goods imports by commodity, current prices, seasonally adjusted, March 2022 to March 2024

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Goods exports

Exports to the EU increased by £0.2 billion (1.6%) in March 2024. This was because of a £0.3 billion increase in fuels exports, which was partially offset by a £0.1 billion fall in exports of machinery and transport equipment (Figure 4). The rise in fuel exports was mainly because of a rise in exports of refined oil to the Netherlands and crude oil to Germany.

Exports to non-EU countries decreased by £0.6 billion (4.0%) in March 2024. This was mainly driven by a £0.6 billion decrease in exports of material manufactures, and a £0.4 billion decrease in exports of machinery and transport equipment. These decreases were partially offset by a £0.2 billion increase in chemicals exports and a £0.1 billion increase in exports of miscellaneous manufactures.

The fall in material manufactures exports was primarily because of a fall in exports to India, while the fall in exports of machinery and transport equipment was linked to a decrease in car exports to the United States. The rise in chemicals exports was because of increased inorganic chemicals exports to the United States.

Figure 4: Exports of goods to the EU increased in March 2024, driven by rising fuel exports

EU and non-EU goods exports by commodity, current prices, seasonally adjusted, March 2022 to March 2024

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Early estimates suggest imports of services increased by around £0.1 billion (0.3%) in value terms in March 2024, while exports rose by £0.3 billion (0.7%) (Figure 5). Although price rises have affected trade in services in recent months, in February and March 2024 there was little difference between trade in services trends in value and inflation-adjusted terms. Imports in inflation-adjusted terms increased by £0.1 billion (0.3%) while exports increased by £0.2 billion (0.7%).

This release includes data for Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024 for the first time, which are used to estimate monthly trade values for January, February and March, replacing our previous estimates for those months. View our UK Trade Quality and Methodology Information (QMI) for more detail on how our trade in services statistics are compiled.

The S&P Global Purchasing Managers' Index for March 2024 reported an increase in UK service sector activity, with strong growth in tech, IT and financial services. There was also some growth in business services, though demand for consumer-facing services continued to fall, with the exception of hotels and restaurants, which saw an increase in activity.

Figure 5: Imports and exports of services are estimated to have increased slightly in both value and inflation-adjusted terms in March 2024

Imports and exports of services, current prices and chained volume measures, seasonally adjusted, March 2021 to March 2024

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Total imports of goods decreased by £5.4 billion (3.8%) in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024, compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2023 (Table 2). Goods imports from the EU fell by £3.1 billion (3.9%). Goods imports from non-EU countries fell by £2.3 billion (3.8%).

Exports of goods decreased by £2.3 billion (2.5%) in Quarter 1 2024. Exports to the EU fell by £1.6 billion (3.5%) and exports to non-EU countries fell by £0.7 billion (1.6%).

Early estimates for imports of services decreased by £0.3 billion (0.4%) in Quarter 1 2024 compared with Quarter 4 2023, while exports of services rose by an estimated £1.3 billion (1.1%).

Imports of goods from the EU decreased by £3.1 billion (3.9%) in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024 compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2023, because of a £2.4 billion decrease in imports of machinery and transport equipment, and a £0.4 billion fall in fuel imports. There were also smaller decreases across multiple other commodities (Figure 6). The fall in imports of machinery and transport equipment was because of decreased imports of cars and aircraft from Germany, with both commodities decreasing to normal levels after reaching series high points in Quarter 4 2023.

Imports from non-EU countries decreased by £2.3 billion (3.8%) in Quarter 1 2024, because of a £1.9 billion fall in imports of fuels and a £0.7 billion fall in machinery and transport equipment. The fall in imports of fuels was because of decreased gas and crude oil imports from Norway and the fall in imports of machinery and transport equipment was linked to falls in electrical machinery imports from China. This was partially offset by a £0.4 billion increase in imports of miscellaneous manufactures, primarily imports of works of art from the United States.

Exports to the EU decreased by £1.6 billion (3.5%) in Quarter 1 2024, because of a £1.5 billion fall in machinery and transport equipment exports and a £0.3 billion fall in material manufactures exports. The decrease in exports of machinery and transport equipment was because of lower exports of cars to Turkey and mechanical machinery to Germany. These decreases were partially offset by a £0.2 billion increase in exports of chemicals, primarily medicinal and pharmaceutical products to Belgium.

Exports to non-EU countries decreased by £0.7 billion (1.6%) in Quarter 1 2024, because of a £0.9 billion fall in exports of fuels and a £0.6 billion fall in exports of chemicals. This was partially offset by increases in exports of miscellaneous manufactures, and machinery and transport equipment of £0.3 billion and £0.2 billion, respectively, as well as smaller increases in other commodities.

The fall in fuel exports was because of lower exports of crude oil to China. The fall in exports of chemicals was because of a fall in exports of medicinal and pharmaceutical products and inorganic chemicals to the United States.

Figure 6: Imports of machinery and transport equipment from the EU decreased in Quarter 1 2024

Changes in imports and exports by goods commodity group, excluding unspecified goods, current prices, seasonally adjusted, Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024 compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2023

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Early estimates indicate that imports of services decreased by £0.3 billion (0.4%) in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024 compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2023. The largest falls in imports were a £0.6 billion decrease in insurance and pension services, and a £0.3 billion decrease in intellectual property services (Figure 7). These decreases were partially offset by a £0.5 billion increase in other business services and a £0.2 billion increase in transport services.

Exports of services increased by £1.3 billion (1.1%) in Quarter 1 2024, because of rises in several service types including £0.7 billion rises in exports of travel services and transport services. These increases were partially offset by a £0.7 billion fall in other business services exports and a £0.2 billion fall in exports of construction services.

The total goods and services trade balance, excluding precious metals, narrowed by £4.7 billion to a deficit of £7.8 billion in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2024 (Figure 8) and has been steadily reducing since Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2022. Exports fell by £1.1 billion over this period, and imports fell by £5.8 billion. When removing the effect of inflation, the total trade deficit, excluding precious metals, narrowed by £4.0 billion to £8.5 billion.

The trade in goods deficit in value terms, excluding precious metals, narrowed by £3.1 billion to £45.9 billion in Quarter 1 2024, as goods imports fell by more than exports. The trade in services surplus is estimated to have widened by £1.6 billion to £38.1 billion, driven by an increase in exports of services.

Explore the 2023 trade in goods data using our interactive tools. Our data break down UK trade in goods with 234 countries by 125 commodities.

Use our map to get a better understanding of what goods the UK traded with a country. Select a country by hovering over it (desktop only) or use the drop-down menu.

Notes:

1. For more information about our methods and how we compile these statistics, see our Trade in goods, country-by-commodity experimental data: 2011 to 2016 article. Users should note that the data published alongside this release are official statistics and no longer experimental. 2.These data are our best estimate of these bilateral UK trade flows. Users should note that alternative estimates are available, in some cases, through the statistical agencies for bilateral countries or through central databases, such as UN Comtrade.
2. This interactive map denotes country boundaries in accordance with statistical classifications set out in Appendix 4 of the Balance of Payments (BoP) Vademecum (PDF, 2.9MB) and do not represent the UK policy on disputed territories.

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You can also explore the 2023 trade in goods data by commodity, such as car exports to the EU, and UK tea or coffee imports. Select a commodity from the drop-down menu or select the levels with your digit or cursor to explore the data.

Notes:

1. For more information about our methods and how we compile these statistics, see our Trade in goods, country-by-commodity experimental data: 2011 to 2016 article. Users should note that the data published alongside this release are no longer experimental.
2. These data are our best estimate of these bilateral UK trade flows. Users should note that alternative estimates are available, in some cases, via the statistical agencies for bilateral countries or through central databases, such as UN Comtrade.
3. These interactive charts denote country boundaries in accordance with statistical classifications set out within Appendix 4 of the Balance of Payments (BoP) Vademecum (PDF, 2.9MB) and does not represent the UK policy on disputed territories.

Download the data

In accordance with the National Accounts Revisions Policy, the data in this release have been revised from January 2024 to February 2024 for both goods and services.

The UK National Accounts, The Blue Book 2024 scheduled for 31 July 2024 has now been moved to the more usual timetable of 31 October 2024 to allow us further time to update the base year from 2019 to 2022 and assure the quality of this granular data.

As a result, The UK National Accounts, The Blue Book 2024 and UK Balance of Payments, The Pink Book: 2024 will now be published on 31 October 2024 rather than 31 July 2024. This means Blue Book 2024 consistent data will be included for the first time in the GDP quarterly national accounts, UK: April to June 2024 30 September 2024 publication. Additionally, a new publication, which focuses on Blue Book aggregates up to end of 2022 will be published at 07:00 on 7 August 2024.

These revisions will be included in the UK Trade: August 2024 publication on 11 October 2024.

The revision period for the June 2024 quarterly national accounts will now be for Quarter 1 2024 only, in line with our standard National Accounts revisions policy

Chained volume measures

Chained volume measures (CVMs) are a "real" measure in that they have had the effect of inflation removed to measure the change in volume between consecutive periods, fixing the prices of goods and services in one period (known as the base year, which is 2019 for trade).

Current price measures

Current price estimates (CPs) measure the actual price paid for goods or services and are not adjusted for inflation. Unless otherwise stated, all current price data are provided in £ million and are seasonally adjusted.

Inflation

Inflation is the change in the average price level of goods and services over a period of time.

Implied deflators

An implied deflator (IDEF) shows the implied change in average prices for the respective components of the trade balance, for example, the IDEF for imports will show the average price movement for imports.

Precious metals and non-monetary gold

Precious metals include precious metals, silver, platinum and palladium, and form part of the commodity group "unspecified goods". Non-monetary gold comprises the majority of this group and is the technical term for gold bullion not owned by central banks.

Trade balance

The trade balance is the difference between exports and imports or exports minus imports. When the value of exports is greater than the value of imports, the trade balance is in surplus. When the value of imports is greater than the value of exports, the trade balance is in deficit. The balance is sometimes referred to as "net exports".

A full Glossary of economic terms is available.

The UK leaving the EU and the subsequent transition period, along with the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, supply chain disruption and global recession, have caused higher levels of volatility in trade statistics in recent years. The monthly analysis shows short-term trade movements, but it is important to note that monthly data can be erratic, and therefore movements should be treated with caution.

Data collection changes

Since the UK left the EU on 31 January 2020, the arrangements for how the UK trades with the EU changed.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) implemented some data collection changes following Brexit, which affected statistics on UK trade in goods with the EU. We have made adjustments to our estimates of goods imports from the EU in 2021 and 2022 to account for these changes, however a structural break remains in the full time series for goods imports from, and exports to, the EU from January 2021.

We therefore advise caution when interpreting and drawing conclusions from these statistics. Our article, Impact of trade in goods data collection changes on UK trade statistics: summary of adjustments and the structural break from 2021 provides more detail.

Data sources

Data from HMRC make up over 90% of trade in goods value and are the main source for this release. Data from the quarterly International Trade in Services (ITIS) Survey make up over 50% of trade in services data. View our UK Trade Quality and Methodology Information (QMI) for more detail. 

Data from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) are the main source for travel services, historically making up around 8% of total imports. The survey has now fully resumed following its suspension in 2020. View our UK Trade QMI for more detail.

Unless otherwise specified, data within this bulletin are in current prices and have not been adjusted to remove the effects of inflation. In line with international standards, our headline trade statistics contain the UK's exports and imports of non-monetary gold. View our National Accounts article: A brief explanation of non-monetary gold in national accounts for more information.

Method

Trade is measured through both exports and imports of goods and services. Data are supplied by over 30 sources, including several administrative sources, with HMRC being the largest for trade in goods.

Office for National Statistics (ONS) UK trade figures are produced using country of dispatch, which records imports as coming from the country dispatching the shipments. However, trade figures can also be produced using country of origin, as is used by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). Users should be aware of the different accounting methods used and the resulting differences across trade figures.

Monthly trade in services data are taken from quarterly trade in services data and split across the months within that quarter through estimation. In months where we have a full quarter's data, we revise previous estimates of monthly values within that quarter.

View more detailed information about the methods used to produce UK trade statistics in our UK Trade methodology.

National Statistics designation status

The UK Statistics Authority suspended the National Statistics designation of UK trade (PDF, 72.9KB) on 14 November 2014. We have now responded to all of the specific requirements of the Office for Statistics Regulation's (OSR) reassessment of UK trade. As part of our engagement with the OSR team, we are sharing our continuous improvement and development plans to support UK trade statistics regaining Accredited official statistics status. We welcome feedback on our new trade statistics, developments, and future plans by email to trade@ons.gov.uk.

Trade asymmetries

Asymmetries can be caused by a range of conceptual and measurement variations between the estimation practices of different countries. Statistical agencies are likely to have different source data, estimation methods, and methodological, geographical, and definitional differences. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) publishes more information on UK trade asymmetries. Analysis on trade in services asymmetries is published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in our Asymmetries in trade data articles.

More quality and methodology information on strengths, limitations, appropriate uses, and how the data were created is available in our UK Trade Quality and Methodology Information (QMI).