01Key Takeaways
- Spain imported $469.04 billion worth of goods in 2023, down 6.0% from $499.06 billion in 2022, the most recent year with verified trade data available in this dataset.
- Mineral fuels led import categories at 14.6% ($68.25 billion), with vehicles ranking second at 10.6% ($49.60 billion).
- Germany was Spain's largest import partner, supplying 10.6% of imports ($49.57 billion).
- The top three import partners together accounted for 29.5% of total import value.
025-Year Trend
| Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $375.5B | $329.7B | $426.1B | $499.1B | $469.0B |
03Top Import Markets (2023)
| Rank | Partner | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | $49.6B | 10.6% |
| 2 | China | $47.6B | 10.1% |
| 3 | France | $41.3B | 8.8% |
| 4 | United States | $30.5B | 6.5% |
| 5 | Italy | $29.7B | 6.3% |
| 6 | Other Europe, nes | $22.9B | 4.9% |
| 7 | Netherlands | $21.0B | 4.5% |
| 8 | Portugal | $17.2B | 3.7% |
| 9 | United Kingdom | $11.6B | 2.5% |
| 10 | Belgium | $10.6B | 2.3% |
04Top Import Categories (2023)
| Rank | Category | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mineral Fuels, Mineral Oils and Products of their Distillation; Bituminous Substances; Mineral Waxes | $68.2B | 14.6% |
| 2 | Vehicles other than Railway or Tramway Rolling-Stock, and parts and accessories thereof | $49.6B | 10.6% |
| 3 | Electrical Machinery and Equipment and parts thereof; Sound Recorders and Reproducers, Television Image and Sound Recorders and Reproducers, and Parts and Accessories of such Articles | $41.6B | 8.9% |
| 4 | Nuclear Reactors, Boilers, Machinery and Mechanical Appliances; Parts thereof | $39.9B | 8.5% |
| 5 | Pharmaceutical Products | $22.4B | 4.8% |
| 6 | Commodities not specified according to kind | $18.5B | 3.9% |
| 7 | Plastics and Articles thereof | $15.4B | 3.3% |
| 8 | Organic Chemicals | $12.5B | 2.7% |
| 9 | Iron and Steel | $12.4B | 2.6% |
| 10 | Optical, Photographic, Cinematographic, Measuring, Checking, Precision, Medical or Surgical Instruments and Apparatus; Parts and Accessories thereof | $11.3B | 2.4% |
05Trade Partner Map
06Analysis
Import Value Pulled Back After a Sharp Two-Year Climb
Spain imported $469.04 billion worth of goods in 2023, down 6.0% from $499.06 billion in 2022. This is the most recent year with verified trade data available in this dataset. The dataset covers a full five years in total, from 2019 through 2023.
Import value fell from $375.47 billion in 2019 to $329.74 billion in 2020, the low point of this five-year window. It then rose for two consecutive years in a row. Import value reached $426.06 billion in 2021 and $499.06 billion in 2022, before pulling back to $469.04 billion in 2023.
This dataset does not explain the 2020 drop, the two-year rebound that followed, or the 2023 pullback. Import value in 2023 nonetheless remained well above every year in this dataset before 2022. This pattern closely mirrors the export side of trade for this country, covered in the companion export data. That companion dataset also peaked in 2022 before easing back in 2023. The import-side pullback of 6.0% was considerably larger than the roughly 1% dip on the export side that same year. Both sides nonetheless moved in the same direction, describing a broadly synchronized slowdown across Spain's overall trade rather than a divergence between imports and exports. A pullback of this size, following two years of rapid growth, still leaves import value well above where it stood at the start of this five-year window.
Mineral Fuels Lead an Import List Reflecting Spain's Energy Dependence
Mineral fuels led every import category in 2023. They were worth $68.25 billion, or 14.6% of the total, the largest single category on this list. Mineral fuels including oil rank as Spain's single largest import category nationally, reflecting the country's reliance on imported energy given its limited domestic oil and gas production. That reliance helps explain why mineral fuels sit atop this country's import list. Vehicles ranked second at 10.6% ($49.60 billion). That category is closely tied to Spain's own vehicle assembly industry and its reliance on imported parts and components, an industry covered in more detail in the companion export data for this country.
Electrical machinery and equipment contributed 8.9% ($41.58 billion), and machinery and mechanical appliances added 8.5% ($39.91 billion), a close pair in the middle of this list. Pharmaceutical products rounded out the top five at 4.8% ($22.43 billion).
A category labeled "Commodities not specified according to kind" ranked sixth at 3.9% ($18.48 billion). It is a recognized catch-all classification within international trade statistics for shipments that do not map to a single specific product code. Plastics contributed 3.3% ($15.43 billion), and organic chemicals added 2.7% ($12.51 billion). Iron and steel contributed 2.6% ($12.38 billion), and optical and medical instruments closed out the top ten at 2.4% ($11.28 billion), the smallest share among the ten categories listed here. Mineral fuels and vehicles together lead this list, describing an economy that imports both the energy it lacks domestically and the components its own manufacturing base depends on. The remaining eight categories on this list are spread far more evenly than the top two, each holding a single-digit share, describing a long tail of industrial, chemical and consumer goods beneath the energy and vehicle categories at the top.
Germany, China and France Lead a Broad Set of Import Partners
Germany was Spain's largest import partner in 2023, taking 10.6% of imports, worth $49.57 billion. China ranked second at 10.1% ($47.56 billion), a much narrower gap than the one separating the top two partners on the export side of trade for this country. France followed at 8.8% ($41.26 billion). Together, these top three partners accounted for 29.5% of total import value.
United States contributed 6.5% ($30.50 billion), and Italy added 6.3% ($29.73 billion), rounding out the top five partners.
A category labeled "Other Europe, nes," a recognized catch-all classification within international trade statistics for shipments not assigned to a single specific origin, ranked sixth at 4.9% ($22.91 billion). Netherlands followed at 4.5% ($21.03 billion), and Portugal added 3.7% ($17.17 billion). United Kingdom contributed 2.5% ($11.58 billion), and Belgium closed out the top ten at 2.3% ($10.57 billion), the smallest share among the ten partners listed here. China stands out as the only major non-European supplier in this top ten. That single exception contrasts with the almost entirely European partner list on the export side of trade for this country. Germany's lead over China is narrow enough that a modest shift in either direction could change which country ranks first in a future year.
Taken together, this dataset's most recent confirmed year describes an import profile split between energy commodities and manufactured goods, sourced from a partner base still anchored in neighboring Europe but supplemented by a single dominant supplier from Asia in China.