A West Asian nation bordering Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, Jordan and Israel, the Syrian Arab Republic shipped US$819.1 million worth of exported products around the world in 2023.

That projected dollar amount results from a 9.6% gain from $747.4 million 5 years earlier in 2019.

Year over year, the value of Syria’s exported products slowed by -24.1% compared to $1.1 billion starting from 2022.

The 5 biggest exports from the Syrian Arab Republic are olive oil, natural calcium phosphates, uncarded and uncombed cotton, cumin or coriander seeds and juniper berries, then miscellaneous nuts. Combined, those 5 leading product categories accounted for almost two-thirds (65.5%) of the value of all Syrian exported products in 2023.

Major Syrian Trading Partners

The latest available country-specific data shows that an estimated 81.1% of products exported from Syria were bought by importers in: Iraq (20.2% of the global total), Italy (13.4%), Germany (13%), Turkey (5.5%), Saudi Arabia (4.8%), France (4.3%), Lebanon (3.8%), Jordan (3.6%), United States (3.5%), Netherlands (also 3.5%), Egypt (3.4%) and Spain (2.1%).

Given Syria’s population of an estimated 23.6 million people, its total $819.1 million in 2023 exports translates to approximately $35 for every resident in the Middle Eastern country. That per-capita amount exceeds the average $30 one year prior.

Syria’s Top 10 Exports

The following export product groups categorize the highest dollar value in Syrian global shipments during 2023 at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) code level. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Syria.

1. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: US$263.3 million (32.1% of total exports)
2. Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: $148.7 million (18.2%)
3. Fruits, nuts: $76.3 million (9.3%)
4. Coffee, tea, spices: $72.8 million (8.9%)
5. Cotton: $48.8 million (6%)
6. Vegetables: $40.6 million (5%)
7. Cereals: $23.1 million (2.8%)
8. Iron, steel: $23 million (2.8%)
9. Vegetable/fruit/nut preparations: $17.8 million (2.2%)
10. Glass: $16.7 million (2%)

Syria’s top 10 export product categories generated well over four-fifths (89.3%) of the overall value of its global shipments.

Salt, sulphur, stone and cement was the fastest grower among the top 10 export categories, up by 102.7% from 2022 to 2023.

In second place for improving export sales was cereals via a 49.1% advance, led by wheat and corn.

Syria’s shipments of animal or vegetable fats, oils and waxes posted the third-fastest gain in value, up by 48.7%.

The leading decliner among Syria’s top 10 export categories was vegetable, fruit or nut preparations. That category recorded a -76.4% year-over-year drop.

At the more detailed 4-digit HTS code level, Syria’s most valuable exported products were olive oil (32% of Syria’s global total), natural calcium phosphates (17.8%), uncarded and uncombed cotton (5.9%), cumin or coriander seeds and juniper berries (5.7%), miscellaneous nuts (4%), preserved vegetables (2.8%), iron or steel scrap (also 2.8%), fresh apples and pears (2.6%), wheat (2.3%) then ginger, saffron and other spices (2.2%).

Products Behind Syria’s Best Trade Surpluses

The following types of Syrian 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.

1. Salt, sulphur, stone, cement: US$68.2 million (Reversing a -$17.5 million deficit)
2. Animal/vegetable fats, oils, waxes: $67.7 million (Reversing a -$142.5 million deficit)
3. Cotton: $35.2 million (Up by 43.9% since 2022)
4. Wool: $11.4 million (Up by 21.6%)
5. Lead: $2.4 million (Down by -16.2%)
6. Collector items, art, antiques: $1.6 million (Down by -28.6%)
7. Raw hides, skins not furskins, leather: $1.5 million (Down by -37.5%)
8. Miscellaneous animal-origin products: $492,000 (Down by -41.3%)
9. Musical instruments: $25,000 (Down by -76.6%)
10. Railways, streetcars: $8,000 (Reversing a -$16,000 deficit)

Syria has positive net exports in the international trade of natural calcium and aluminum phosphates. In turn, these cashflows indicate Syria’s strong competitive advantages under the salt, sulphur, stone and cement product category.

Products Causing Syria’s Worst Trade Deficits

Overall Syria incurred an estimated -US$2.7 billion trade deficit during 2023, down -34.1% from -$4.1 billion in red ink one year earlier in 2022.

Below are exports from Syria that result in negative net exports or product trade balance deficits. These negative net exports reveal product categories where foreign spending on home country Syria’s goods trail Syrian importer spending on foreign products.

1. Plastics, plastic articles: -US$196.3 million (Down by -67.3% since 2022)
2. Mineral fuels including oil: -$186.2 million (Down by -16.7%)
3. Milling products, malt, starches: -$155.6 million (Down by -28.4%)
4. Iron, steel: -$137.2 million (Down by -33.2%)
5. Electrical machinery, equipment: -$135.7 million (Down by -31.2%)
6. Machinery including computers: -$127.3 million (Down by -45.8%)
7. Food industry waste, animal fodder: -$123.8 million (Down by -15.4%)
8. Cereals: -$112.9 million (Down by -25.7%)
9. Sugar, sugar confectionery: -$100.3 million (Down by -20%)
10. Pharmaceuticals: -$95.4 million (Down by -13.8%)

Syria has highly negative net exports and therefore deep international trade deficits under the product category for plastics. That category encompasses both as a material itself and items made from plastics.

Syrian Export Companies

Not one Syrian corporation ranks among the Forbes Global 2000.

Wikipedia lists exports-related companies from Syria. Selected examples are shown below.

• Bank of Syria and Overseas (international bank)
• Château Bargylus (wine)
• Chemins de Fer Syriens (industrial transportation)
• Hmisho Trading Group (heavy metals, vehicles)
• Syrian Petroleum Company (oil, gas)

 
One key indicator of a country’s economic performance is its unemployment rate. The unemployment rate for the Syrian Arab Republic averaged 13.5% for 2023, down from an average 13.8% jobless rate in 2022 according to Trading Economics metrics.

Syria’s capital city is Damascus.

See also Turkey’s Top Trading Partners, Top 10 Exports from Cyprus, Iraq’s Top Trading Partners, Italy’s Top Trading Partners and Germany’s Top Trading Partners

Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Country Profiles. Accessed on October 19, 2024

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on October 19, 2024

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on October 19, 2024

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on October 19, 2024

Trading Economics, Syria Unemployment Rate. Accessed on October 19, 2024

Wikipedia, List of Companies of Syria. Accessed on October 19, 2024

Wikipedia, Syria. Accessed on October 19, 2024