China, the United States and Germany ranked as the largest exporters of intermediate goods globally in the last quarter of 2022, according to the WTO.
While China recorded external sales of this product category for $354 billion (-15% year-on-year), the United States totaled $208 billion (-3 percent).
Meanwhile, German exports were 158 billion, a 12% decline over the same period in 2021.
Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Singapore, Canada, Belgium and Malaysia were other notable exports.
All major exporters significantly reduced their input trades in Q4 2022.
The largest export declines in Q4 2022 were seen in Hong Kong, China and Belgium, as exports from both fell 27 percent.
Belgian exports of intermediate goods to major European partners and the United States declined significantly across a wide range of products, from diamonds to semi-finished metals (iron, copper) and automotive parts (e.g., gearboxes).
In contrast, the United Kingdom was one of the few countries that maintained positive growth in its intermediate goods exports throughout 2022, achieving 12% year-on-year growth in Q4 2022, the largest increase among major exporters.
Largest exporters
This export growth was largely driven by non-monetary gold exports to China and Hong Kong, which rose from $0.7 billion in Q4 2021 to $16.8 billion in Q4 2022.
In the last quarter of 2022, global supply chains faced disruptions caused by the geopolitical context, raw material shortages, high energy prices and weak or fluctuating industrial and consumer demand, especially in Europe and the United States.
With few exceptions, most interregional and intraregional trade flows in the intermediate goods sector declined sharply by the end of 2022.
Intra-Asia trade in intermediate goods declined by 16%, indicating a slowdown in regional supply chains.
A similar trend was observed in Europe, where regional trade in industrial inputs declined by 10 percent.
Intermediate goods exports to South and Central America from all regions were among those that decreased the most. China drastically cut its exports of semi-manufactured metals (iron and steel products) to the region by two-thirds in Q4 2022 YoY (from US$ 945 million to US$ 321 million).