Which currency is mainly used by the EU Member States for their trade in goods with non-EU partners? Last year in the European Union (EU), nearly half (49%) of the total amount of goods exported to non-EU countries were invoiced in euros and a third (33%) in US dollars. The picture was reversed for imports, with slightly more than half of imports paid in US dollars (55%) and around a third in euros (34%).
The type of products traded influences clearly the choice of invoicing currency. For instance, while over 85% of the petroleum products imported into the EU in 2016 were traded in US dollars, around half of the primary goods (54%) and the manufactured goods (50%) that the EU exported to non-EU countries were invoiced in euros. This also partly explains why some Member States have higher invoicing shares in certain currencies than others.
Largest proportion of imports from outside the EU paid in euros in Slovenia, lowest in the United Kingdom
Nearly two thirds of imports of goods were paid for in euros in Slovenia (68%), Latvia and Slovakia (both 65%) and about half in Austria (55%), Croatia (49%) and Germany (48%). At the opposite end of the scale, the euro accounted for less than a quarter of the total amount of goods imported into the United Kingdom (5%), Sweden (14%), Greece and Denmark (both 24%). Overall, more than half of the goods imported were invoiced in US dollars in 20 of the 28 Member States.
The source dataset can be found here.
Highest share of exports to non-EU countries invoiced in euros in Slovakia, lowest in the United Kingdom
A majority of Member States (18 out of 28) invoiced their exports of goods to non-EU countries mainly in euros. The highest shares were registered in Slovakia (81%) and Slovenia (79%), ahead of Italy (71%), Latvia and Austria (both 69%). In contrast, the United Kingdom (3%), Ireland (9%), Sweden (17%), Denmark (21%) and Malta (23%) were the Member States that used the euro the least for invoicing their exports of goods to non-EU countries.
The source dataset can be found here.
For more information
Eurostat website section dedicated to international trade in goods statistics
Eurostat database on international trade in goods
Eurostat Statistics Explained article on extra-EU trade by invoicing currency