Flemish Region accounted for 82 per cent of Belgian goods exports in 2023
Flemish exports accounted for 82 per cent of Belgian exports and 84 per cent of imports, figures from Statistics Flanders showed on Thursday. Belgium was the fifth largest exporting country in the EU in 2023, after Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and France.
Exports of goods in the Flemish region reached 430 billion euros in 2023, according to preliminary figures. This is 11 percent less than in 2022 (in current prices). Flemish imports of goods amounted to 426 billion euros in 2023, or 13 per cent less than in 2022, ending two previous years of strong growth.
The main reason for the decrease in Flemish exports is the decrease in the amount of exports of oil and natural gas and pharmaceuticals in 2023, both of which are about a quarter lower.
Decline in pharmaceutical exports
Figures from Statistic Flanders also show that Flemish high-tech exports reached 50 billion euros in 2023, a decrease of 25 percent in current prices compared to 2022. Flemish high-tech exports accounted for 11.5 percent of total Flemish exports. The decline was almost entirely due to the fall in pharmaceutical exports.
2021 was a peak year for Flemish high-tech exports, with an increase of 76 percent (in current prices), partly due to a strong increase in exports of pharmaceutical products related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, exports increased by a further 16 percent.
Despite the decline, pharmaceuticals remain dominant in Flemish high-tech exports, accounting for 61 percent of the total in 2023. The other most important product groups in Flemish high-tech exports are electronics and telecommunications (14 per cent) and scientific instruments (10 per cent).
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO YORICK JANSENS
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