Nicknamed “The Lone Star State” and located in America’s South Central region, Texas shipped US$444.6 billion worth of exported products around the globe in 2023.

That dollar amount results from a -8.8% year-over-year reduction from $487.4 billion in 2022.

Compared to $277.4 billion back in 2020, international sales of Texan exports accelerated by 60.3% to the total shown above for 2023.

Texas is America’s number one exporter by state with total revenue almost equaling combined sales for the next biggest export states (California, Louisiana, New York and Illinois). The value of exports shipped from Texas equals 23.4% of the United States’ overall exported products for 2023, down from 23.5% in 2022.

Texan exports represent 23.4% of the state’s total economic output or nominal Gross Domestic Product in 2023 ($1.9 trillion) up from 20.2% one year earlier.

The most valuable products shipped from Texas are crude oil, refined petroleum oils excluding biodiesel, and light petroleum oils also excluding biodiesel. Collectively, those major commodities generated 38.6% of total Texan export revenues during 2023.

Given the population of 30.5 million Texans in 2023, the total $444.6 billion in 2023 Texan exports translates to roughly $14,600 for every resident in the Lone Star State. That per-capita metric significantly falls below the average $16,300 one year earlier during 2022.

Per YCharts, the unemployment rate for Texas was 4% at December 31, 2023 up from the state’s 3.8% jobless percentage one year earlier.

Texas’ Top 10 Exports

The following export products represent the highest dollar value in Texas global shipments during 2023. Also shown is the percentage share each export category represents in terms of overall exports from Texas.

Figures are shown at the more granular six-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level, for more precise product identification.

1. Crude petroleum oils: US$104.2 billion (23.4% of total Texan exports)
2. Refined petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: $34.4 billion (7.7%)
3. Light petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: $33.1 billion (7.4%)
4. Liquified propane: $17.8 billion (4%)
5. Integrated circuits (processors/controllers): $11.6 billion (2.6%)
6. Civilian aircraft, aircraft engines, other parts: $10 billion (2.2%)
7. Natural gas (liquid): $9.25 billion (2.1%)
8. Computer parts and accessories: $6.1 billion (1.4%)
9. Machinery for making semi-conductor devices: $5.9 billion (1.3%)
10. Natural gas (gaseous state): $4.9 billion (1.1%)

The top 10 exports from Texas accounted for over half (53.3%) of the overall value of the state’s global shipments.

Civilian aircraft, aircraft engines and other parts represent the fastest grower among the top 10 Texan export categories by dollar value, up by 13.1% from 2022 to 2023.

The only other gainer was processors and controllers for electronic integrated circuits, posting a modest 0.7% year-over-year upturn.

The severest year-over-year reductions among Texas’ top 10 export products belong to natural gas in gaseous state (down -54% from 2022), computer parts or accessories (down -31.5%), liquefied natural gas (down -24.4%), liquefied propane (down -19.9%), and refined petroleum oils excluding biodiesel (down -16%).

Key Facts About Texan International Trade

Overall, Texas generated a US$62.5 billion surplus exporting and importing products during 2023. That dollar amount reveals a -38.2% year-over-year shrinkage from $101.2 billion in black ink one year earlier for 2022.

Another way of saying surplus or deficit is positive or negative net exports. In a nutshell, the term “net exports” quantifies the amount by which foreign spending on a state’s goods or services exceeds or lags that same state’s spending on foreign goods or services.

Products imported into Texas totaled US$382.1 billion during 2023.

Below are the top 10 products imported by Texas, highlighting the state’s highest spending on foreign-made goods in 2023.

1. Crude petroleum oils: US$26.6 billion (7% of total Texan imports)
2. Digital processing units (individual components): $20.7 billion (5.4%)
3. Mid-sized automobiles (piston engine): $15.8 billion (4.1%)
4. Refined petroleum oils excluding biodiesel: $10.7 billion (2.8%)
5. Modems, similar reception/transmission devices: $10 billion (2.6%)
6. Smartphones: $9.8 billion (2.6%)
7. Trucks: $6.9 billion (1.8%)
8. Insulated wirings (vehicles, ships, aircraft): $6.5 billion (1.7%)
9. Integrated circuits (processors/controllers): $6.36 billion (1.7%)
10. Passenger vehicles with spark-ignition and electric motors*: $6.2 billion (1.6%)

*not charged by electric plug

As for trade balances by product, Texas has highly positive net exports in the international trade of petroleum oils and similar energy products. These positive cashflows indicate comparative competitive advantages for Texas under these product categories showing the impact of foreign demand on the state’s global balance sheet.

Most Valuable Trade Partners for Texas

The following list shows the top 10 customers that bought two-thirds (66.5%) worth of the total value of products exported from Texas during 2023.

1. Mexico: US$129.5 billion (29.1% of total Texan exports)
2. Canada: $35.9 billion (8.1%)
3. Netherlands: $26.6 billion (6%)
4. China: $26.5 billion (6%)
5. South Korea: $21.1 billion (4.7%)
6. Japan: $13.4 billion (3%)
7. Singapore: $13 billion (2.9%)
8. United Kingdom: $12.5 billion (2.8%)
9. Taiwan: $11.6 billion (2.6%)
10. Brazil: $10.5 billion (2.4%)

The top customers for Texan exports located in North America (Mexico, Canada) bought approaching two-fifths (37.2%) of the overall value of goods shipped from the Lone Star State during 2023.

Products from Texas exported to leading customers in Asia (mainland China, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Taiwan) consumed another 19.2% of overall Texan export sales.

Texas Export Companies

Fifty-one of Texas-headquartered corporations rank among Forbes Global 2000. Selected examples are listed below.

• AT&T Inc (telecommunications)
• ConocoPhillips (oil, gas)
• Dell (computers)
• Energy Transfer Equity (oil, gas)
• Exxon Mobil (oil, gas)
• National Oilwell Varco (oilfield equipment)
• Phillips 66 (oil refining)
• Sysco Corp (food products)
• Tesoro Corp (refined oils)
• Valero Energy (oil, gas)

Shown within brackets for each company above is a summary of the international trade-related product category in which each business deals.
 

The capital city for Texas is Austin, nicknamed the “Live Music Capital of the World”.

See also America’s Top 20 Export States, United States Top 10 Exports and Top United States Trade Balances

Research Sources:
FlagPictures.org, Flags of US States. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Houston Chronicle, Texas’ biggest companies, according to Forbes, by Fernando Ramirez. Accessed on February 28, 2024

IBIS World, State Economic Profile (including GDP). Accessed on February 28, 2024

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Office of the Texas Governor, The Largest Companies Headquartered in Texas. Accessed on February 28, 2024

United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade (State by 6-Digit HS Code). Accessed on February 28, 2024

United States Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Texas. Accessed on February 28, 2024

USA Trade Online, Official Source of Trade Statistics. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Wikipedia, Economy of Texas. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Wikipedia, Texas. Accessed on February 28, 2024

Wikipedia, List of Texas Companies. Accessed on February 28, 2024

YCharts, Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Report. Accessed on February 28, 2024