In this article, we will present some of the most recent key UK government data into the goods and services that the UK imports and exports from the EU.

While the total amount of trade the UK has done with the EU has generally fallen since the early 2000s, the EU is still the UK’s largest trading partner with a share of around 50% of UK imports and around 40% of UK exports (or 46% of total trade). As such, the trading relationship that the UK has with the EU is of great importance.

It is worth pointing out that 2020 (the most recent year for good statistical data) was an exceptional year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. While the trade did still continue the volumes of certain types of goods and services that were traded were different from normal. Notably, trade-in fuels and trade-in goods and services that relied on the movement of people, such as travel and transportation, were reduced during 2020. Nonetheless, the data is still very relevant and does still demonstrate the main themes in the UK’s trading relationship with the EU.

Goods and Services Exported to the EU

In 2020, the UK exported a total of £251 billion worth of goods and services to the EU.

What Goods Does the UK Export to the EU?

The top 10 goods exported from the UK to the EU in 2020 were:

  1. Petroleum, petroleum products, and related materials

  2. Road vehicles

  3. Medicinal and pharmaceutical products

  4. Miscellaneous manufactured articles

  5. Electrical machinery, apparatus, and appliances

  6. Transport equipment

  7. Industrial machinery and parts

  8. Power generating machinery and equipment

  9. Articles of apparel & clothing accessories

  10. Organic chemicals\n

What Services Does the UK Export to the EU?

The top 10 services exported from the UK to the EU in 2020 were:

  1. Business services

  2. Financial services

  3. Telecommunications, computer, and information services

  4. Transportation

  5. Intellectual property

  6.  

  7. Travel

  8. Insurance and pensions

  9. Manufacturing

  10. Maintenance and Repair

  11. Personal, Cultural, and Recreational

  12.  

  13. Construction

  14. Government\n

What Were Total UK Exports to Non-EU Countries?

Total exports to non-EU countries were £350 billion.

Which EU Countries Does the UK Export to the Most?

The top 10 EU Countries for UK exports are:

  1. Germany

  2. Ireland

  3.  

  4. The Netherlands

  5. France

  6. Belgium

  7. Italy

  8. Spain

  9. Sweden

  10. Poland

  11. Luxembourg\n

Goods and Services Imported from the EU

In 2020, the UK imported a total of £301 billion worth of goods and services from the EU.

What Goods Does the UK Import From the EU?

  1. Road vehicles

  2.  

  3. Medicinal and pharmaceutical products

  4.  

  5. Electrical machinery, apparatus, and appliances

  6. Miscellaneous manufactured articles

  7. Industrial machinery and parts

  8. Telecommunication and sound recording apparatus

  9. Office machines and automatic data processing machines

  10. Vegetables and fruits

  11. Articles of apparel & clothing accessories

  12. Non-ferrous metals\n

What Services Does the UK Import From the EU?

  1. Business services

  2. Travel

  3. Transportation

  4. Telecommunications, computer, and information services

  5. Financial services

  6. Intellectual property

  7.  

  8. Construction

  9.  

  10. Insurance and pensions

  11.  

  12. Manufacturing

  13. Government

  14. Personal, cultural, and recreational

  15.  

  16. Maintenance and repair\n

What Were Total UK Imports from Non-EU Countries?

Total imports from non-EU countries were £296 billion.

Which EU Countries Does the UK Import from the Most?

The top 10 EU countries for UK imports are:

  1. Germany

  2. The Netherlands

  3. France

  4. Belgium

  5. Spain

  6.  

  7. Italy

  8.  

  9. Ireland

  10.  

  11. Poland

  12.  

  13. Sweden

  14.  

  15. Denmark\n

What are the Biggest Challenges that Importers and Exporters Face?

As well as understanding what goods the UK trades with which countries in the EU, for many people (particularly those involved in trade in the EU) it is helpful to know what the biggest challenges are that UK importers and exporters face.

A study of 2017 found that there were some common themes amongst UK importers and exporters as to what the biggest challenges they faced were. These themes applied whether or not they were involved in trade with EU countries or countries outside of the EU as well.

Some of the main problems that were raised in the study were:

  • Paperwork

  • Logistics

  • Customs

  • Currency Fluctuations

  • Additional costs associated with trading internationally

  • Managing international payments

How Has Brexit Affect the Exchange Rate Between the Pound and the Euro?\nBound is a specialist company that provides services to companies that trade in foreign currencies to help them to deal with the issue of fluctuating exchange rates.

The biggest effect that Brexit has had on the exchange rate between the pound sterling and the euro is that it has caused an increase in the volatility of the exchange rate.

Unpredictability in exchange rates is a major cause of concern when doing business between different currencies. What businesses often look for most when planning business operations into the future is predictability. An unreliable exchange rate will be one fundamental feature of trade between the UK and the EU that many companies will look to avoid.

Which Countries Use the Euro?

The following 19 EU countries all use the euro:

  1. Austria

  2.  

  3. Belgium

  4. Cyprus

  5. Estonia

  6. Finland

  7.  

  8. France

  9. Germany

  10. Greece

  11. Ireland

  12.  

  13. Italy

  14. Latvia

  15. Lithuania

  16. Luxembourg

  17. Malta

  18. the Netherlands

  19. Portugal

  20. Slovakia

  21.  

  22. Slovenia

  23.  

  24. Spain

As well as these EU member states that use the euro, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City all use it under agreements made with the EU despite not being members of the EU.

It should be pointed out that not all EU countries actually use the euro. While 19 EU countries do use the euro, 8 do not. This, in some cases, can make the foreign exchange requirements of companies that import or export to the UK more complicated than it would first appear.

The following EU countries do not use the euro:

  1. Denmark

  2. Sweden

  3. Hungary

  4. Poland

  5. Czech Republic

  6. Bulgaria

  7. Romania

  8. Croatia

It is worth noting that Sweden, Denmark, and Poland are all major trading partners of the UK that are based in the EU but do not use the euro.

Which Non-EU Countries Does the UK Trade with the Most?

The 10 biggest non-EU trading partner countries that the UK has are:

  1. The United States of America

  2. China

  3. Switzerland

  4. Japan

  5. Norway

  6. Hong Kong

  7.  

  8. Turkey

  9.  

  10. India

  11.  

  12. Canada

  13. Australia\n

More About Bound…

As we mentioned earlier, Bound is a specialist company that helps businesses that trade in foreign currencies to manage the issue of fluctuating exchange rates. For companies that have been conducting business in euros, the services of companies like Bound have been particularly useful in recent years.

Through Bound, businesses are able to fix the exchange rate for future dates. Rather than planning and committing to deals in foreign currencies and then simply waiting to complete a transaction at whatever the exchange rate happens to be at that time, it is possible through Bound to prearrange the exchange rate. That’s right… you simply fix the exchange rate in advance and are not left worrying about the possibility that exchange rates could change adversely.

The two basic deals that Bound provides are forward trades and option trades, which are both financial products that have been in use for a long time.

With a forward trade, the exchange rate is simply fixed for a future date. An option trade, on the other hand, is more like an insurance policy. With an option trade, the customer has the right to exchange currencies in the future at a certain rate, but they are not obligated to do so like they are with a forward trade. This means that if the exchange rate happens to move favourably over the course of time, it is still possible to benefit by exchanging currencies through the normal channels.  

Traditionally, the use of forward and option trades have been confined to only the bigger businesses because the process of taking out either type of trade has been time-consuming, complicated, and expensive. Bound are able to provide forward and option trades at very little cost and they are now appropriate for use by businesses of all sizes. Additionally, as well as aiming to reduce the cost of businesses protecting themselves from fluctuating exchange rates, Bound also aims to make the process as simple and transparent as possible.

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Currency hedging technology with unrivalled speed and flexibility

Copyright @ 2024 Bound

All testimonials, reviews, opinions or case studies presented on our website may not be indicative of all customers. Results may vary and customers agree to proceed at their own risk.

Bound (Bound Rates Limited) is a limited company registered in England & Wales under number 13036275 with registered offices at 16 Great Chapel Street, London W1F 8FL

Bound Rates Limited (FRN 966723) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as an Investment Firm.​

For clients based in the European Economic Area, payment services are provided by CurrencyCloud B.V.. Registered in the Netherlands No. 72186178. Registered Office: Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 296 - 298, Mindspace Nieuwezijds Office 001 Amsterdam. CurrencyCloud B.V. is authorised by the DNB under the Wet op het financieel toezicht to carry out the business of an electronic-money institution (Relation Number: R142701).

Payment services in the United States are provided by Visa Global Services Inc. (VGSI), a licensed money transmitter (NMLS ID 181032) in the states listed here. VGSI is licensed as a money transmitter by the New York Department of Financial Services. Mailing address: 900 Metro Center Blvd, Mailstop 1Z, Foster City, CA 94404. VGSI is also a registered Money Services Business (“MSB”) with FinCEN and a registered Foreign MSB with FINTRAC. For live customer support contact VGSI at (888) 733-0041.

For clients based in the United Kingdom and rest of the world, payment services (Non MIFID related products) are provided by The Currency Cloud Limited. Registered in England and Wales No. 06323311. Registered Office: Stewardship Building 1st Floor, 12 Steward Street London E1 6FQ. The Currency Cloud Limited is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuing of electronic money (FRN: 900199).

Stay up to date with insights and events

Enhance your finance skills by learning from our network of top industry experts

Currency hedging technology with unrivalled speed and flexibility

Copyright @ 2024 Bound

All testimonials, reviews, opinions or case studies presented on our website may not be indicative of all customers. Results may vary and customers agree to proceed at their own risk.

Bound (Bound Rates Limited) is a limited company registered in England & Wales under number 13036275 with registered offices at 16 Great Chapel Street, London W1F 8FL

Bound Rates Limited (FRN 966723) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as an Investment Firm.​

For clients based in the European Economic Area, payment services are provided by CurrencyCloud B.V.. Registered in the Netherlands No. 72186178. Registered Office: Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 296 - 298, Mindspace Nieuwezijds Office 001 Amsterdam. CurrencyCloud B.V. is authorised by the DNB under the Wet op het financieel toezicht to carry out the business of an electronic-money institution (Relation Number: R142701).

Payment services in the United States are provided by Visa Global Services Inc. (VGSI), a licensed money transmitter (NMLS ID 181032) in the states listed here. VGSI is licensed as a money transmitter by the New York Department of Financial Services. Mailing address: 900 Metro Center Blvd, Mailstop 1Z, Foster City, CA 94404. VGSI is also a registered Money Services Business (“MSB”) with FinCEN and a registered Foreign MSB with FINTRAC. For live customer support contact VGSI at (888) 733-0041.

For clients based in the United Kingdom and rest of the world, payment services (Non MIFID related products) are provided by The Currency Cloud Limited. Registered in England and Wales No. 06323311. Registered Office: Stewardship Building 1st Floor, 12 Steward Street London E1 6FQ. The Currency Cloud Limited is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuing of electronic money (FRN: 900199).

Stay up to date with insights and events

Enhance your finance skills by learning from our network of top industry experts

Currency hedging technology with unrivalled speed and flexibility

Copyright @ 2024 Bound

All testimonials, reviews, opinions or case studies presented on our website may not be indicative of all customers. Results may vary and customers agree to proceed at their own risk.

Bound (Bound Rates Limited) is a limited company registered in England & Wales under number 13036275 with registered offices at 16 Great Chapel Street, London W1F 8FL

Bound Rates Limited (FRN 966723) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as an Investment Firm.​

For clients based in the European Economic Area, payment services are provided by CurrencyCloud B.V.. Registered in the Netherlands No. 72186178. Registered Office: Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 296 - 298, Mindspace Nieuwezijds Office 001 Amsterdam. CurrencyCloud B.V. is authorised by the DNB under the Wet op het financieel toezicht to carry out the business of an electronic-money institution (Relation Number: R142701).

Payment services in the United States are provided by Visa Global Services Inc. (VGSI), a licensed money transmitter (NMLS ID 181032) in the states listed here. VGSI is licensed as a money transmitter by the New York Department of Financial Services. Mailing address: 900 Metro Center Blvd, Mailstop 1Z, Foster City, CA 94404. VGSI is also a registered Money Services Business (“MSB”) with FinCEN and a registered Foreign MSB with FINTRAC. For live customer support contact VGSI at (888) 733-0041.

For clients based in the United Kingdom and rest of the world, payment services (Non MIFID related products) are provided by The Currency Cloud Limited. Registered in England and Wales No. 06323311. Registered Office: Stewardship Building 1st Floor, 12 Steward Street London E1 6FQ. The Currency Cloud Limited is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 for the issuing of electronic money (FRN: 900199).