01Key Takeaways
- Zambia exported $10.43 billion worth of goods in 2023, down 10.4% from $11.64 billion in 2022, a modest pullback and the most recent year with verified trade data available in this dataset.
- Copper and articles thereof led every export category at 64.5% ($6.73 billion), by far the largest single category on this list.
- Switzerland was Zambia's largest export partner, taking 41.4% of exports, worth $4.32 billion.
- The top three export partners together accounted for 74.5% of total export value.
025-Year Trend
| Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $7.0B | $7.9B | $11.0B | $11.6B | $10.4B |
03Top Export Markets (2023)
| Rank | Partner | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Switzerland | $4.3B | 41.4% |
| 2 | China | $1.9B | 17.7% |
| 3 | Congo - Kinshasa | $1.6B | 15.4% |
| 4 | Singapore | $561.8M | 5.4% |
| 5 | South Africa | $391.0M | 3.7% |
| 6 | Zimbabwe | $297.1M | 2.8% |
| 7 | Botswana | $179.7M | 1.7% |
| 8 | Namibia | $148.6M | 1.4% |
| 9 | Tanzania | $138.0M | 1.3% |
| 10 | Malawi | $135.9M | 1.3% |
04Top Export Categories (2023)
| Rank | Category | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Copper and Articles thereof | $6.7B | 64.5% |
| 2 | Salt; Sulphur; Earths and Stone; Plastering Materials, Lime and Cement | $511.0M | 4.9% |
| 3 | Mineral Fuels, Mineral Oils and Products of their Distillation; Bituminous Substances; Mineral Waxes | $416.0M | 4.0% |
| 4 | Ores, Slag and Ash | $248.4M | 2.4% |
| 5 | Iron and Steel | $193.6M | 1.9% |
| 6 | Vehicles other than Railway or Tramway Rolling-Stock, and parts and accessories thereof | $182.7M | 1.8% |
| 7 | Inorganic Chemicals; Organic or Inorganic Compounds of Precious Metals, of Rare-Earth Metals, of Radioactive Elements or of Isotopes | $168.0M | 1.6% |
| 8 | Tobacco and Manufactured Tobacco Substitutes | $166.9M | 1.6% |
| 9 | Natural or Cultured Pearls, Precious or Semi-Precious Stones, Precious Metals, Metals Clad with Precious Metal, and Articles thereof; Imitation Jewellery; Coin | $165.9M | 1.6% |
| 10 | Sugars and Sugar Confectionery | $164.6M | 1.6% |
05Trade Partner Map
06Analysis
Export Value Eased Back in 2023 After a Sharp Two-Year Climb
Zambia exported $10.43 billion worth of goods in 2023, down 10.4% from $11.64 billion in 2022. This is the most recent year with verified trade data available in this dataset. The dataset covers a full five years, from 2019 through 2023, tracking this copper-mining economy.
Export value stood at $7.04 billion in 2019. It rose to $7.92 billion in 2020, then climbed sharply to $11.01 billion in 2021 and $11.64 billion in 2022, the high point of this five-year window, before easing back to $10.43 billion in 2023.
This dataset does not explain the sharp climb between 2020 and 2021 or the pullback that followed. Export value for a copper-dependent economy like this one can shift sharply alongside global commodity price movements. A decline of 10.4% describes a modest pullback rather than a sharp reversal. Export value nonetheless remains well above every year in this window before 2021. Export value climbed sharply over the first three years of this window before easing back over the following two. The overall shape across this five-year window points to a period of sustained growth followed by a modest correction, rather than a sharp reversal of fortune.
Copper Dominates an Export List Anchored in Mining
Copper and articles thereof led every export category in 2023, worth $6.73 billion, or 64.5% of the total, by far the largest single category on this list, nearly two-thirds of total export value on its own. Salt, sulphur, earths and stone ranked a distant second at 4.9%, worth $511.00 million. Mineral fuels also followed at 4.0%, worth $415.95 million. These first three categories together account for well over seven in ten dollars of total export value.
Ores, slag and ash contributed 2.4%, worth $248.44 million, and iron and steel added a further 1.9%, worth $193.60 million. These first five categories together account for nearly eight in ten dollars of total export value, underscoring how heavily this list leans on copper and other mined materials.
Vehicles contributed 1.8%, worth $182.71 million. Inorganic chemicals added 1.6% ($168.03 million), essentially tied with tobacco at 1.6% ($166.88 million), precious stones and metals at 1.6% ($165.87 million), and sugars and sugar confectionery at 1.6% ($164.59 million), the smallest share among all ten categories on this list. A long tail of chemical, agricultural and consumer goods fills out the rest of this list, all trailing copper by a wide margin.
Switzerland and China Lead a Highly Concentrated Partner List
Switzerland was Zambia's largest export partner in 2023, taking 41.4% of exports, worth $4.32 billion. A significant share of Zambia's copper export profit remains abroad in countries like Switzerland, where major commodity trading firms including Glencore are headquartered, a pattern consistent with Switzerland ranking as Zambia's top export partner even though it is not the metal's final consumer market. China ranked second at 17.7%, worth $1.85 billion. Congo - Kinshasa followed at 15.4%, worth $1.60 billion. Together, these top three partners accounted for 74.5% of total export value, an extremely high concentration level. That level of concentration is common among smaller export economies where a single commodity and a handful of destinations dominate total trade.
Singapore contributed 5.4% ($561.78 million), another global trading and logistics hub distinct from copper's final consumer markets. South Africa added 3.7% ($391.00 million). Zimbabwe followed at 2.8%, worth $297.09 million, a neighboring economy with its own mining sector.
Botswana contributed 1.7% ($179.75 million), and Namibia added a further 1.4% ($148.55 million), both fellow southern African mining economies. Tanzania contributed 1.3% ($138.03 million), essentially tied with Malawi at 1.3% ($135.93 million), the smallest share among the ten partners listed here, both fellow members of the Southern African Development Community. This list is dominated by a global trading hub alongside neighboring southern African economies. Ranks four through ten here are packed within roughly four percentage points of each other, a far tighter cluster than the wide gaps separating the top three.
Taken together, this dataset's most recent confirmed year describes an export profile overwhelmingly anchored in copper, easing back modestly after a sharp two-year climb. That profile is sourced from a partner base led by a global commodity trading hub and neighboring southern African economies, a notably concentrated grouping shaped as much by where trading firms are headquartered as by where the metal is ultimately consumed.