TRADE FIGURES:

TRADE BETWEEN BELGIUM AND ASIA

The share of ASIA in Belgium's foreign trade is increasing steadily.  The increase rate reached a seven per cent in 1999.  Asia is absorbing 5,86 % of our exports and 9,76 % of our imports are from ASIA.  The Belgian, as biggest exporters per head in the world, would spend more than 60% of his working time in producing for export thus relying on foreign market for his job.  In the same way it can be appraised that if Belgians are working more than two months a year for Germany, they do work no more than 9 days for ASIA and 27.35 ours for CHINA (including HONG KONG). 

CHINA (including Hong Kong) is good for 19, 18 % of our export to ASIA and CHINA (including Hong Kong) is taking a 20,17 share in our import from ASIA). 

A striking feature of our trade figures with ASIA is the trade imbalance that prevails in favor of ASIAN countries.  We would buy 1,5 more to ASIA than we sell.  In 1999 the trade imbalance with CHINA is expected to reach a 74 billion Belgian Francs (16 billion RMB).  For the first time CHINA is thus surpassing the figures of JAPAN that should tower at a 68 billion Belgian Francs (15 billion RMB) this year.  For the figures of the bilateral trade between CHINA and Belgium, please refer to the section "CHINA-BELGIUM" of this site.

THE PLACE OF
THE BELGIUM-LUXEMBOURG ECONOMIC UNION
IN WORLD TRADE

• In 1997, the Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU), with 0.2 % of the world population, was responsible for 3.10 % of world exports and 2.80 % of world imports.
• With only 2.9 % of the population of the European Union, the BLEU accounted, in 1997, for 8.2 % of EU's exports and 8.1 % of EU's imports.
• The ratio between the BLEU's exports of goods and Gross National Product (GNP) in 1997 was of the order of 68.3 %.

The Top 10 of Products exported (1997)

1. Transport equipment : 14.95 %
2. Machinery & appliances : 13.42 %
3. Chemical & Pharmaceutical products : 13.39 %
4. Base metals & articles of base metal : 9.45 %
5. Plastics & Rubber : 8.20 %
6. Diamonds & Precious stones : 7.37 %
7. Textiles & textile articles : 6.11 %
8. Food industry : 4.56 %
9. Mineral products : 3.79 %
10. Animal products : 2.99 %

The BLEU's Top 20 Customers (1997)

Germany, France, the Netherlands,
United Kingdom, Italy, USA, Spain, Israel,
Switzerland, India, Sweden, Japan, Austria,
Russia, Denmark, Hong Kong,
Turkey, Poland, Portugal, Finland

The BLEU's Top 20 Suppliers (1997)

Germany, the Netherlands, France,
United Kingdom, USA, Italy, Sweden, Japan,
Spain, Ireland, China, Switzerland, Russia, Israel,
India, Norway, Finland, Canada, Austria, Brazil

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