FOREIGN TRADE OF THE EU COUNTRIES AFTER THE END OF THE DEBT CRISIS

Abstract

The study focuses on some foreign trade indicators of the EU member states after the end of the debt crisis. The paper offers the analysis of the dynamics of exports and imports of goods and services; of the balance of trade in goods and services; of the trade turnover of goods and services of the EU countries between 2019 and 2023. While the deepest phase ended around 2014-2015, the official end of the EU crisis is often seen in 2018 when Greece exited its final bailout program, marking the formal conclusion for the most affected nation. In 2023, the top five exporters of goods and services among the EU-27 member states were Germany (20.9% of total EU exports of goods and services), the Netherlands (12.2%), France (9.9%), Italy (8.0%), and Belgium (7.0%). In 2023, the five largest importers of goods and services among the bloc's members were Germany (20.15% of total EU imports of goods and services), the Netherlands (11.52%), France (11.39%), Italy (8.09%), and Belgium (7.28%). The EU countries are extremely dependent on foreign trade, e.g., in 2023, nineteen members had trade-to-GDP ratio of over 100%: Luxembourg – 366.05%; Slovenia – 240.85%; Malta – 224.36%; Belgium – 222.71%; Ireland – 219.38%; Netherlands – 206.75%; Cyprus – 198.63%; Slovakia – 193.16%; Hungary – 178.33%; Czech Republic – 163.96%; Lithuania – 158.30%; Estonia – 157.46%; Latvia – 151.26%; Bulgaria – 122.81%; Austria – 122.15%; Croatia – 118.18%; Denmark – 117.92%; Poland – 114.47%; Sweden – 104.05%; while the other eight members had the ratio below 100%: Portugal – 96.90%; Greece – 93.41%; Germany – 91.16%; Romania – 86.67%; Finland – 83.51%; Spain – 73.15%; Italy – 70.42%; France – 70.15%. Over 2019-2023, on the one hand, exports from Cyprus increased by 67.26%; Slovenia – by 57.25%; Poland – by 45.41%; Bulgaria – by 43.49%; Croatia – by 43.02%; on the other hand, exports from Finland grew by 8.44%; Germany – by 15.6%; France – by 17.81%. Eight EU countries reduced their exports of goods and services in 2023 compared to 2022: Belgium, Greece, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Finland. In 2023, Germany had the largest goods and services surplus, while France ran the largest trade deficit. During 2019-2024, four EU countries — France, Romania, Greece, and Finland — had a trade deficit, while eight EU countries —Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Belgium, and Malta — had a trade surplus.