That dollar amount reflects a 45.4% increase compared to $37.9 billion five years earlier during 2019.
Year over year, the overall value of Greek exports fell by -4.3% from $57.6 billion in 2022.
Based on the average exchange rate for 2023, Greece uses the euro which depreciated by -3.5% against the US dollar since 2019 but appreciated by 2.6% from 2022 to 2023. The weaker European Union currency after 2019 made Greece’s exports paid for in stronger US dollars relatively less expensive for international buyers.
Greece’s 5 most valuable export products are refined petroleum oils, medication mixes in dosage, petroleum gases, olive oil, then aluminum plates, sheets or strips. Collectively, that leading quintet of products represents almost two-fifths (39.1%) of total Greek shipments in 2023. That percentage suggests a relatively concentrated portfolio of products.
Best Customers for Greek Exports
The latest available country-specific data shows that 60% of products exported from Greece was bought by importers in: Italy (11.6% of the Greek total), Bulgaria (6.9%), Germany (6.7%), Cyprus (6.5%), Spain (4.1%), United States of America (3.9%), United Kingdom (3.8%), Romania (3.6%), France (3.5%), Türkiye (also 3.5%), Libya (3.1%) and Lebanon (2.8%).
From a continental perspective, 72.1% of Greece exports by value was delivered to fellow European countries while 14.3% was sold to Asian importers. Greece shipped another 6.9% worth of goods to Africa.
Smaller percentages went to North America (4.7%), Latin America (1.2%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, then Oceania (0.8%) led by Marshall Islands, Australia and New Zealand.
Given Greece’s population of 10.5 million people, its total $55.1 billion in 2023 exports translates to roughly $5,300 for every resident in the southern European nation. That per-capita metric lags the average $5,400 for 2022.
Greece’s Top 10 Exports
The following export product groups represent the highest dollar value in Greek global shipments during 2023. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Greece.
- Mineral fuels including oil: US$17.8 billion (32.3% of total exports)
- Pharmaceuticals: $3 billion (5.5%)
- Aluminum: $2.8 billion (5.2%)
- Machinery including computers: $2.4 billion (4.4%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: $2.4 billion (4.4%)
- Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $1.7 billion (3.1%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: $1.7 billion (3%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $1.6 billion (2.9%)
- Fruits, nuts: $1.6 billion (2.9%)
- Dairy, eggs, honey: $1.5 billion (2.7%)
Greece’s top 10 exports generated about two-thirds (66.3%) of the overall value of total Greek shipments.
Animal or vegetable fats, oils and waxes represents the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 40.4% from 2022 to 2023.
In second place for improving export sales was the dairy, eggs and honey category which advanced 24.7%.
Greece’s shipments of fruits and nuts posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 23.9%.
The leading decliner among Greece’s top 10 export categories was mineral fuels including oil, pulled down by a -15.9% reduction.
Note that the results listed above are at the categorized two-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. For a more granular view of exported goods at the four-digit HTS code level, see the section Searchable List of Greece’s Most Valuable Export Products further down below.
Products Creating the Greatest Trade Surpluses for Greece
The following types of Greek product shipments represent positive net exports or a trade balance surplus. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports.
In a nutshell, net exports represent the amount by which foreign spending on a home country’s goods or services exceeds or lags the home country’s spending on foreign goods or services.
- Aluminum: US$1.3 billion (Up by 32.5% since 2022)
- Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $1.2 billion (Up by 3.5%)
- Fruits, nuts: $1.1 billion (Up by 30.9%)
- Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $1 billion (Up by 105.9%)
- Tobacco, manufactured substitutes: $478 million (Up by 23.8%)
- Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $430.2 million (Up by 3.3%)
- Cotton: $385.2 million (Down by -35.1%)
- Fish: $360 million (Up by 16.9%)
- Stone, plaster, cement, asbestos: $192 million (Up by 9.7%)
- Dairy, eggs, honey: $165.2 million (Reversing a -$155.3 million deficit)
Greece has highly positive net exports in the international trade of aluminum. In turn, these cashflows indicate Greece’s strong competitive advantages under the aluminum product category.
Products Causing the Biggest Trade Deficits for Greece
Overall Greece incurred a -US$34.4 billion trade deficit during 2023, a -14.9% decrease from the -$40.4 billion in red ink for 2022.
Below are exports from Greece that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Greece’s goods trail Greek importer spending on foreign products.
- Mineral fuels including oil: -US$6.8 billion (Down by -47.8% since 2022)
- Vehicles: -$5 billion (Up by 45.5%)
- Machinery including computers: -$3.8 billion (Up by 10.3%)
- Electrical machinery, equipment: -$3.7 billion (Up by 7.2%)
- Organic chemicals: -$2.4 billion (Up by 5.2%)
- Meat: -$1.6 billion (Up by 20.4%)
- Pharmaceuticals: -$1.39 billion (Down by -6.8%)
- Plastics, plastic articles: -$1.28 billion (Up by 8.6%)
- Aircraft, spacecraft: -$1.26 billion (Up by 1297.5%)
- Iron, steel: -$1.22 billion (Down by -5.9%)
Greece has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the mineral fuels including oil subcategory, notably for crude petroleum oil.
These cashflow deficiencies clearly indicate Greece’s competitive disadvantages in the international mineral fuels market, but also represent key opportunities for Greece to improve its position in the global economy through focused innovations in alternative energy resources.
Major Greek Export Companies
Based on Forbes Global 2000 rankings, here are examples of large international trade players headquartered in Greece.
- Hellenic Petroleum (refined oil, gas)
- Hellenic Telecom Organization (telecommunications)
- Motor Oil Hellas (oil, gas)
Global trade intelligence firm Zepol also mentions the following companies as examples of Greek exporters.
- Inomessiniak (wine, olive oil)
- Interoliva (olives, glass bottles and jars)
- Promelk (t-shirts, brassieres, sweaters)
- St Agelopoulo (olives, live carp)
- Tsalma Marble Of Central North Greece (monument/building stone, wood boxes/cases/crates)
Searchable List of Greece’s Most Valuable Export Products
The following searchable table displays 100 of the most in-demand goods shipped from Greece during 2023. Shown beside each product label is its total export value then the percentage increase or decrease since 2022.
| Rank | Export Product | Value (US$) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Processed petroleum oils | $14,597,648,000 | -15.4% |
| 2 | Medication mixes in dosage | $2,879,011,000 | +13% |
| 3 | Petroleum gases | $1,608,694,000 | -39.9% |
| 4 | Olive oil | $1,261,315,000 | +49.5% |
| 5 | Aluminum plates, sheets, strips | $1,180,922,000 | +5.1% |
| 6 | Cheese, curd | $1,003,417,000 | +24.7% |
| 7 | Whole fish (fresh) | $822,710,000 | +6.3% |
| 8 | Computers, optical readers | $809,788,000 | -11.2% |
| 9 | Electrical energy | $758,547,000 | +25.2% |
| 10 | Petroleum oil residues | $726,489,000 | +27.9% |
| 11 | Other prepared/preserved vegetables (non-frozen) | $689,454,000 | +0.5% |
| 12 | Copper tubes, pipes | $640,194,000 | -11.1% |
| 13 | Miscellaneous preserved fruits | $581,111,000 | +13.5% |
| 14 | Aluminum bars/rods | $525,294,000 | -26.2% |
| 15 | Miscellaneous fruits (fresh) | $478,290,000 | +25.5% |
| 16 | Cotton (uncarded, uncombed) | $451,650,000 | -31.8% |
| 17 | Insulated wire/cable | $447,915,000 | -14.7% |
| 18 | Aluminum foil (thin) | $436,313,000 | -13.7% |
| 19 | Tobacco-containing or sustitute products | $403,933,000 | +58.4% |
| 20 | Electric storage batteries | $398,793,000 | +20.6% |
| 21 | Solar power diodes/semi-conductors | $393,819,000 | +1.2% |
| 22 | Models, puzzles, miscellaneous toys | $375,665,000 | +28.7% |
| 23 | Fresh or dried citrus fruit | $375,415,000 | +49.5% |
| 24 | Cigars/cigarellos, cigarettes | $361,782,000 | +8.7% |
| 25 | Buttermilk, curdled cream/milk, yogurt | $358,591,000 | +29.5% |
| 26 | Aluminum (unwrought) | $349,347,000 | -22.4% |
| 27 | Phone devices including smartphones | $318,030,000 | +13.6% |
| 28 | Gas/liquid/electricity/production meters | $307,154,000 | +41.6% |
| 29 | Other food preparations | $300,132,000 | -7.3% |
| 30 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $293,263,000 | -9.8% |
| 31 | Bread, biscuits, cakes, pastries | $268,488,000 | +26.9% |
| 32 | Hydraulic cements | $263,207,000 | +13.5% |
| 33 | Iron and steel tubes, pipes | $257,858,000 | +25.9% |
| 34 | Paper containers, cellulose wadding | $252,265,000 | +26% |
| 35 | Unmanufactured tobacco, tobacco waste | $229,212,000 | +3.5% |
| 36 | Propylene/olefin polymers | $224,977,000 | -23.2% |
| 37 | Beauty/makeup/skin care preparations | $222,975,000 | +14.4% |
| 38 | Apricots, cherries, peaches, nectarines, plums | $219,397,000 | +22.4% |
| 39 | Liquid crystal/laser/optical tools | $217,111,000 | +50.1% |
| 40 | Miscellaneous iron and steel structures | $211,428,000 | +30.5% |
| 41 | Piston engine parts | $202,631,000 | +5.9% |
| 42 | Aluminum oxide/hydroxide | $201,878,000 | +5% |
| 43 | Wheat | $201,098,000 | -8.6% |
| 44 | Monument/building stones, art | $198,483,000 | +4.6% |
| 45 | Packaged insecticides/fungicides/herbicides | $197,212,000 | +6.9% |
| 46 | Flour/meal/starch/malt extract food preparations | $194,023,000 | +5.2% |
| 47 | Coiled iron or non-alloy steel bars, rods | $190,528,000 | -51.5% |
| 48 | Fertilizer mixes | $188,979,000 | -12.2% |
| 49 | Plastic plates, sheets, film, tape, strips | $184,648,000 | -0.1% |
| 50 | Other organic cleaning preparations | $180,519,000 | -4.4% |
| 51 | Miscellaneous furniture | $176,067,000 | +43% |
| 52 | Plastic packing goods, lids, caps | $170,289,000 | +1.4% |
| 53 | Sanitary towels, baby napkins/liners | $160,154,000 | +16.7% |
| 54 | Calcareous monument or building stone | $157,977,000 | +5.6% |
| 55 | Miscellaneous iron or steel tubes, pipes | $152,796,000 | -23.7% |
| 56 | Automobile parts/accessories | $144,070,000 | +18.7% |
| 57 | Paint/varnish non-aqueous solution | $141,854,000 | +15% |
| 58 | Temperature-change machines | $136,707,000 | +14.6% |
| 59 | Copper waste, scrap | $128,272,000 | -13.2% |
| 60 | Styrene polymers | $126,842,000 | -25.3% |
| 61 | Centrifuges, filters and purifiers | $126,404,000 | -37% |
| 62 | Vinegar preserved vegetables, fruits, nuts | $125,783,000 | +7.6% |
| 63 | Hair preparations | $123,699,000 | +19.2% |
| 64 | Copper wire | $115,036,000 | -4.3% |
| 65 | Alcohol (including spirits, liqueurs) | $114,876,000 | +12.8% |
| 66 | Yachts, other pleasure/sports vessels | $114,445,000 | +26% |
| 67 | Iron or non-alloy steel bars, rods | $113,175,000 | -49.4% |
| 68 | Turbo-jets | $112,906,000 | +734% |
| 69 | Other oils from olives | $111,543,000 | +72.6% |
| 70 | Jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, pastes | $111,222,000 | -4.8% |
| 71 | Miscellaneous animal feed preparations | $110,931,000 | +14.7% |
| 72 | Lifting/loading machinery | $110,168,000 | +5.5% |
| 73 | Wine | $107,978,000 | +3.6% |
| 74 | Grapes (fresh or dried) | $106,507,000 | +2.7% |
| 75 | Miscellaneous iron or steel items | $105,563,000 | +33.5% |
| 76 | Aircraft or spacecraft parts | $104,889,000 | +50% |
| 77 | Precious metal ores, concentrates | $103,484,000 | +36.5% |
| 78 | Pasta, couscous | $103,072,000 | +17.4% |
| 79 | Lamps, lighting, illuminated signs | $103,065,000 | +6.1% |
| 80 | Bridge structures, parts | $102,975,000 | +12.5% |
| 81 | Women's clothing (knit or crochet) | $101,122,000 | -23.5% |
| 82 | Tomatoes (prepared/preserved) | $99,003,000 | +21.7% |
| 83 | Cruise/cargo ships, barges | $98,052,000 | +714.8% |
| 84 | Synthetic yarn woven fabrics | $96,791,000 | -39.5% |
| 85 | Base metal mountings, fittings | $96,608,000 | +18.2% |
| 86 | Lower-voltage switches, fuses | $96,262,000 | -25.6% |
| 87 | T-shirts, vests (knit or crochet) | $95,994,000 | -8.8% |
| 88 | Machinery parts | $93,086,000 | +10.5% |
| 89 | Miscellaneous fresh/chilled vegetables | $93,057,000 | +30.5% |
| 90 | Plastic tableware, kitchenware, toiletry | $92,192,000 | -10.4% |
| 91 | Microphones/headphones/amps | $92,038,000 | -38.2% |
| 92 | Women's clothing (not knit or crochet) | $91,878,000 | -0.2% |
| 93 | Electro-medical equip (e.g. xrays) | $91,823,000 | +15.3% |
| 94 | Rice | $89,113,000 | +8.2% |
| 95 | Oil seeds | $88,860,000 | -21.1% |
| 96 | Knit or crochet women's blouses, shirts | $88,207,000 | -22.3% |
| 97 | Organic surface-active goods, soap | $88,160,000 | -8.5% |
| 98 | Cases, handbags, wallets | $88,105,000 | -30.3% |
| 99 | Carbon/natural mineral products | $88,074,000 | +6.1% |
| 100 | Miscellaneous plastic items | $86,264,000 | -10.8% |
These 100 exported goods were worth a subtotal of US$43.5 billion or 79.1% by value for all products exported from Greece during 2023.
In macroeconomic terms, Greece’s total exported goods represent 13.2% of its overall Gross Domestic Product for 2023 ($417 billion valued in Purchasing Power Parity US dollars). That 13.2% for exports to overall GDP in PPP for 2023 compares to 14.8% one year earlier. Those percentages suggest a relatively decreasing reliance on products sold on international markets for Greece’s total economic performance, albeit based on a short timeframe.
Another key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. Greece’s unemployment rate averaged 10.826% in 2023, down from an average 12.425% for 2022 according to International Monetary Fund statistics.
Greece’s capital city is Athens.
See also Greece’s Top 10 Imports, Greece’s Top Trading Partners, italy’s Top 10 Exports and Top EU Export Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook: Country Profiles. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Forbes 2019 Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on April 9, 2024
International Monetary Fund, Exchange Rates selected indicators (Domestic Currency per U.S. dollar, period average). Accessed on April 9, 2024
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on April 9, 2024
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Wikipedia, Gross domestic product. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Wikipedia, List of Companies of Greece. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Wikipedia, Purchasing power parity. Accessed on April 9, 2024
Zepol’s company summary highlights by country. Accessed on April 9, 2024