Scotland’s Exports Continue to Increase

Scotland’s international exports increased by 3.4 per cent in 2018. Exports to the rest of the UK also increased, up 2.5 per cent.

Scotland’s Chief Statistician today released Export Statistics Scotland 2018, which provides estimates of the cash value of Scotland’s exports of goods and services, by industry and destination for 2018. These show that in 2018 Scotland’s international exports (excluding oil and gas) increased by £1.1 billion to £33.8 billion.

This was helped by strong performance in exports of food and beverages, up £420 million (7.1 per cent) underpinned by strong whisky exports. The manufacture of food and beverages continues to the largest industry for international exports in Scotland.

Scottish export to EU countries grew by 4.5 per cent to £16.1 billion in 2018. International exports to non-EU countries grew at a slightly slower rate, increasing by 2.5 per cent to £17.7 billion.

Scottish exports to the rest of the UK (excluding oil and gas) also increased in 2018, up 2.5 per cent to £51.2 billion. This was driven by strong performance in exports of financial and insurance activities and utilities.

Total international and rest of the UK exports (excluding oil and gas) increased by 2.9 per cent to £85.0 billion in 2018. Exports to the rest of the UK accounted for 60 per cent of this total, EU exports accounted for 19 per cent and non-EU exports accounted for 21 per cent.

The USA continues to be Scotland’s top international export destination country with an estimated £5.5 billion of goods and services exports in 2018. Within the EU, France (£3.0 billion) overtook the Netherlands (£2.8 billion) as the largest market, followed by Germany (£2.5 billion).

Background

The full statistical publication is available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/export-stats-scotland-2018

These statistics show growth in international exports from the manufacturing sector, up £690 million (3.8 per cent) to £18.7 billion. International exports from the services sector grew at a slower rate, increasing by £80 million (0.7 per cent) to £12.2 billion in 2018. International exports of professional, scientific and technical activities, Scotland's largest international exporting industry within the services sector, saw a decline of £120 million (3.4 per cent).

This publication presents the most recent data for exports of goods and services from Scotland for 2002 to 2018. Data has been revised from previous versions, to take into account new information and sources. These published estimates relate to both international and rest of the UK exports and exclude exports of oil and gas extracted from the UK continental shelf. However, for the first time, it includes experimental statistics giving indicative figures of how the overall totals would look if exports of oil and gas were included.

Further information on Scottish export statistics, including answers to some of the most common questions on are available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/about-export-statistics-Scotland

The figures released today were produced by independent statistical staff free from any political interference, in accordance with professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. More information on the standards of official statistics in Scotland can be accessed at: https://www2.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/About