Culture statistics - international trade in cultural goods

Data extracted in March 2022.

Planned article update: March 2023.

Highlights

In 2020, the extra-EU trade balance of cultural goods remained positive, but the gap was narrowing.

In 2020, for most Member States, the value of intra-EU trade in cultural goods was greater than the value of extra-EU trade in cultural goods.

Exports of cultural goods as a share of total exports, 2015 and 2020 (%)

This article is part of the Culture statistics online publication. Trade statistics for cultural goods provide information on the value of international exchanges of these goods and show the proportion of cultural trade relative to all EU international trade. The analysis concerns data from 2015 and 2020 and presents:

export and import values in absolute and relative terms (in EUR million and as a share of total trade respectively);
extra-EU and intra-EU trade;
the type of goods traded;
the EU’s main trading partners.

Statistics on international trade in cultural goods are based on data extracted from the Comext, Eurostat’s database on international trade in goods.

Full article

Cultural trade in 2015 and 2020 at EU and national level

This article analyses recent statistics on international trade in cultural goods for the European Union (EU). Data are also presented for the candidate countries (Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Serbia and Turkey) and potential candidates (Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo).

Trade partners for the EU and Member States

The data presented for the EU concern extra-EU trade. This looks at the EU (27 countries from 2020) as a single entity and excludes intra-EU trade (between the EU Member States). By contrast, trade data at national level for individual Member States concern both intra-EU and extra-EU trade.

Cultural goods in international trade, identified in Comext according to the Combined Nomenclature (CN), are those using ‘creation’ or ‘artistic expression’ in the production process, the purpose of which is to transmit aesthetic, symbolic or artistic values, or which are considered to enable artistic expression or can be recognized as designed primarily to provide access to cultural content.

Goods meeting those criteria are identified in seven domains of culture and aggregated into 12 meaningful groups of cultural products – ‘antiques’, ‘works of art’, ‘craft articles’, ‘jewellery’, ‘books’, ‘newspapers, journals and periodicals’, ‘maps’, ‘architectural plans and drawings’, ‘photographic plates and films’, ‘recorded media’, ‘video game consoles’, and ‘musical instruments’ (see Figure 8). These groups are very diverse; some contain products for mass consumption (‘books’, ‘newspapers’) and others only specialised items that might have little demand or supply (‘maps’, ‘photographic plates and films’). The statistics do not cover the large-scale manufactured products partially give access to cultural content (for example, TV sets, cameras, smartphones, or tablets).

Extra-EU trade in cultural goods – trade surplus in decline

The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic had a visible impact on international trade in cultural goods in 2020.

The value of extra-EU exports of cultural goods declined by 9.9 %, from EUR 19.4 billion in 2015 to EUR 17.5 billion in 2020. The value of imports was stable at EUR 16.0 billion. This means the trade surplus for cultural goods declined from EUR 3.4 billion in 2015 to EUR 1.5 billion in 2020 (based on current prices when the data was captured in 2015 and 2020). The ratio of exports to imports – the ‘cover ratio’ – was 1.21 in 2015 and 1.09 in 2020 (see Table 1).

Looking at extra-EU exports by groups of cultural products, there was only growth in the ‘photographic plates and films’, ‘video game consoles’, and ‘musical instruments’ categories. For imports, there was growth in the ‘works of art’, ‘photographic plates and films’, ‘video game consoles’, and ‘musical instruments’ categories.

‘Jewellery’, ‘works of art’, ‘recorded media’ and ‘books’ contributed the most to the value of extra-EU cultural goods exports in 2015 and 2020. Together, these categories made up more than 80 % of the export value in both compared years.

Comparing 2015 and 2020 data, there are some similarities in the trade balance of cultural goods.

In 2015:

the highest trade surplus was recorded for products in the ‘jewellery’ category (EUR +3.8 billion), followed by ‘recorded media’ and ‘works of art’ (EUR +1.3 billion for both categories);
the highest trade deficits were recorded for products in the ‘video game consoles’ category (EUR -2.8 billion), the ‘musical instruments’ category (EUR -0.3 billion) and the ‘craft articles’ category (EUR -0.2 billion).

In 2020:

‘jewellery’ had the highest trade surplus again (EUR +3.5 billion), followed by ‘recorded media’ and ‘newspapers, journals and periodicals’ (EUR +1.2 billion and EUR +0.1 billion respectively);
the highest trade deficit was once again for products in the ‘video game consoles’ category (EUR -2.9 billion):
other significant trade deficits were recorded in the ‘musical instruments’ category (EUR -0.4 billion) and the ‘antiques’ and ‘craft articles’ categories (both EUR -0.1 billion).

Table 1: Extra-EU trade in cultural goods, EU, 2015 and 2020
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

The trade balance of cultural goods remains positive, but the gap is narrowing at EU level

When 2020 is compared to 2015, the value of cultural goods exports increased in 13 of the 27 Member States (with figures doubling in Bulgaria and Czechia) and decreased in the other Member States (mostly in Malta and Luxembourg). The absolute value of exports increased the most in Poland (EUR +1.2 billion), Czechia and Spain (both EUR +0.8 billion). It decreased the most in Italy (EUR -1.4 billion), Germany (EUR -1.0 billion) and France (EUR -0.7 billion).

The value of cultural goods imports increased in 15 Member States. The largest increases in absolute terms were recorded in Germany (EUR +1.3 billion), Poland (EUR +1.0 billion) and Czechia (EUR +0.4 billion). By contrast, France (EUR -0.9 billion), Italy (EUR -0.7 billion) and Austria (EUR -0.3 billion) had the largest decreases in the value of imports compared 2015 and 2020 (see Table 2).

In 2020, only 11 Member States had a positive trade balance in cultural goods. The largest positive trade balance in cultural goods was in Italy (EUR +3.8 billion), followed by Poland (EUR +1.0 billion) and Czechia (EUR +0.5 billion). Compared with 2015, Italy remained the trade balance leader and was the only country to keep its position. In 2020, the largest trade deficit in cultural goods was recorded in Germany (EUR -0.8 billion). However, in 2015, Germany had the second largest trade surplus in cultural goods (after Italy).

Table 2: International trade in cultural goods, 2015 and 2020
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

Evolution of extra-EU trade in goods over the years

Figure 1 shows the evolution of extra-EU trade in goods over the years. As can be seen, the stable growth in values of the extra-EU trade in cultural goods (solid lines) between 2015 and 2019 collapsed in 2020. The values for extra-EU trade in total goods (dotted lines) also fell in 2020, but this decline was not as deep as in the case of trade in cultural goods.

In addition, the trade surplus for extra-EU trade in total goods decreased by 5.5 % in 2020 compared to 2015. However, the trade balance for extra-EU trade in cultural goods, while remaining positive, decreased by 56.8 %.

As the cultural goods make up a low proportion – around 1 % – of the overall EU’s value of (extra-EU) exports and imports in total goods, note that Figure 1 shows two different orders of magnitude. The value of extra-EU exports in total goods in 2020 was EUR 1.93 trillion and the value of imports was EUR 1.72 trillion.

Figure 1: Evolution of extra-EU imports and exports in cultural goods and in total goods, EU, 2011-2020

(EUR billion for cultural goods - left hand axis, EUR trillion for total goods - right hand axis)

Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd) and (ext_lt_introEU27_2020)

Contribution of cultural trade to overall exports

In 2020, the share of exports of cultural goods in total exports was higher than the EU average (0.9 %) in only five Member States (based on extra-EU and intra-EU trade): France (1.6 %), Poland (1.5 %), Italy (1.4 %), Latvia (1.1 %) and Czechia (1.0 %). Cultural goods accounted for a relatively low share of total exports mostly in Finland, Hungary and Cyprus.

Between 2015 and 2020, the contribution of cultural goods to total exports increased in 10 Member States, with the biggest relative increases in Czechia (up from 0.6 % to 1.0 %) and Spain (up from 0.5 % to 0.8 %). In 15 Member States, the share of cultural goods in total exports decreased, with the relatively largest decline in Luxembourg (down from 1.7 % to 0.3 %). In Lithuania and Cyprus, the contribution of cultural goods to total exports did not change when these two years were compared (see Figure 2).

Figure 2: Exports of cultural goods as a share of total exports, 2015 and 2020
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

Contribution of cultural trade to overall imports

In the EU, cultural goods accounted for 0.9 % of total (extra-EU) imports in 2020, compared with 1.0 % in 2015 (see Figure 3). In 11 Member States, the share of cultural goods in total imports was higher in 2020 than in 2015. The contribution of cultural goods to total imports grew most notably in Ireland (by 0.3 pp). The highest share of cultural goods in total imports in 2020 was in France (1.3 %), followed by Poland, Ireland and Austria – all higher than the EU average of 0.9 %. The share of cultural goods in total imports was lowest in Hungary, Romania, Lithuania and Slovenia (see Figure 3).

Figure 3: Imports of cultural goods as a share of total imports, 2015 and 2020
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

Intra-EU and extra-EU trade

In most Member States, the value of intra-EU trade in cultural goods was greater than the value of extra-EU trade in cultural goods

The ratio between intra-EU and extra-EU trade shows the diversity of a country's trade patterns and may reflect historical ties and geographical location. Care should be taken when interpreting the size of intra-EU trade relative to extra-EU trade, in particular because of significant quasi-transit trade in some EU Member States (for example, the Netherlands).^[1]

In 2020, the estimated total value of cultural goods exported by Member States was EUR 37.6 billion. 53.5 % of these cultural goods were destined for other Member States, and 46.5 % were destined for non-EU countries (see Figure 4). In 20 Member States, at least half of the total export value of cultural goods came from trade with other Member States. In several cases, this share was considerably higher: more than 90 % in Slovakia and over 80 % in Poland and Czechia. By contrast, the value of extra-EU exports exceeded the value of intra-EU exports in Malta, Ireland, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Sweden and Finland.

Figure 4: Share of extra-EU and intra-EU trade in all exports of cultural goods, 2020
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

For imports of cultural goods by Member States, the total estimated value in 2020 was EUR 34 billion. 52.9 % of these cultural goods were imported from other Member States, and 47.1 % were imported from non-EU countries (see Figure 5). In 21 Member States, more than 50% of all imports of cultural goods were from other Member States. In Czechia, Austria, Portugal and Croatia, at least 80 % of total imports were from other Member States.

By contrast, more than 50 % of imports of cultural goods were from outside the EU in the Netherlands (where it reached 75%), Ireland, Malta, Spain, Germany and France.

Figure 5: Share of extra-EU and intra-EU trade in all imports of cultural goods, 2020.
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

Trade in cultural goods by product

Jewellery accounted for almost 50 % of the value of extra-EU exports of cultural goods

The level of trade in cultural goods is affected by many factors, including: differences in the characteristics of cultural products that make them mass-market products or niche products; the different specialisations of Member States in producing these goods; and technological innovations driving new consumption patterns.

In 2020, jewellery made of precious metal and stones accounted for 48.4 % of extra-EU exports of cultural goods (48.4 %). 80.6 % of extra-EU exports of cultural goods were in the ‘jewellery’, ’works of art’, ’recorded media’ and ’books’ categories (see Table 3).

Some particular specialisations among Member States are apparent in the international trade of cultural goods. These are explained below.

Jewellery accounted for more than half of all exports of cultural products in Italy (75.8 %), France (59.0 %) and Ireland (55.6 %). Products from this category also had the largest share in the export of cultural goods from Bulgaria and Denmark.
Products in the ‘works of art’ category were the main cultural goods exported from Luxembourg (39.3 %).
The ‘recorded media’ category was the leading type of cultural exports in four Member States and its share was over 50 % in Czechia (51.5 %) and Austria (50.4 %).
Books were the principal cultural goods exported in nine Member States – accounting for more than half of total exports from Latvia (69.8 %), Malta (54.8 %), Slovenia (52.8 %) – followed by Lithuania, Hungary, Greece, Croatia, Belgium and Germany.
The ‘video game consoles’ category had the highest share in six Member States, accounting for 36.8 % of the total exports of cultural goods in the Netherlands (see footnote 1), 36.4 % in Poland, 35.2 % in Slovakia and 34.9 % in Spain.
Craft articles (handmade fabrics and ornamental articles) were the most exported type of cultural goods from Portugal (40.3 %).
Products in the ‘newspapers, journals and periodicals’ category were the most common cultural goods exported from Estonia (35.3 %).

Table 3: Exports of cultural goods by product category, 2020
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

Jewellery and video game consoles were the cultural goods most imported from outside the EU

In 2020, five categories accounted for 85.3 % of the cultural goods imported into the EU from non-EU countries: ‘jewellery’ (30.7 %), ‘video game consoles’ (23.9 %), ‘works of art’ (13.3 %), ‘books’ (10.0 %) and ‘musical instruments’ (7.4 %) – see Table 4.

Looking at imports in individual Member States (and therefore taking account of both intra-EU imports and extra-EU imports):

eight countries imported jewellery (in terms of value) more than any other type of cultural good: Ireland (where jewellery accounted for 46.2 % of all imported cultural goods), Italy, France, Malta, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Denmark;
for seven countries, video game consoles were the most imported cultural goods: Poland (47.2 % of all imported cultural goods), the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Slovakia, Romania and Germany;
in six countries, books were the most common type of cultural imports: Cyprus (37.2 % of all imported cultural goods), Slovenia, Luxembourg, Austria, Belgium and Finland;
craft articles accounted for the highest share of imports of cultural goods in Bulgaria (43.7 % of all imported cultural goods), Croatia and Hungary;
recorded media were the most imported cultural goods in Czechia (39.1 % of all imported cultural goods), Greece and Portugal.

Table 4: Imports of cultural goods by product category, 2020
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prd)

The EU’s principal partners for trade in cultural goods

Although the value of their markets for EU exporters shrunk since 2015, Switzerland and the United Kingdom markets were the leading destinations for EU exports of cultural goods in 2020

The total share of cultural goods market held by the EU’s 10 main export partners in cultural-goods trade decreased from 82 % in 2015 to 79 % in 2020.

In 2020, the EU’s principal export markets for cultural goods were Switzerland (accounting for 21.7 % of all EU exports of cultural goods by value), the UK (18.9 %) and the United States (14.5 %). Together, they accounted for over half of all exports of cultural goods. Exports to each of the EU’s other trade partners were all below 10 % (see Figure 6).

Comparing 2020 to 2015, exports of cultural goods to China increased significantly by 3.8 percentage points (pp) and EUR 0.6 billion in absolute values. Exports of cultural goods to Russia, Japan, the US, the UK and Turkey were also higher in 2020 than in 2015. Exports to the other top 10 partners were lower than in 2015.

Total exports of cultural goods decreased to Switzerland (by 5 pp and EUR 1.4 billion in absolute values) and to the United Arab Emirates (by 2.7 pp). Exports of cultural goods to the EU’s other main partners – Hong Kong and Norway – also slightly decreased.

Figure 6: Top 10 partners for extra-EU exports of cultural goods, EU, 2015 and 2020
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prt)

Most EU imports of cultural goods came from China

In 2020, over a third of imports of cultural goods to the EU (71 %) came from four countries: China (25.2 %), the UK (16.7 %), the US (15.6 %) and Switzerland (13.3 %). The share of each of the other top 10 partners – Turkey, Japan, Thailand, India, Hong Kong and Indonesia – was less than 10 % (see Figure 7).

Comparing imports of cultural goods from the EU’s main partners in 2015 and 2020, the most significant decrease was from Switzerland (8.5 pp and EUR 1.4 billion in absolute values). Imports from Hong Kong and China decreased by 1.2 pp each. There were also decreases from Thailand and the UK.

Imports of cultural goods from Japan to the EU increased (by 3.3 pp and EUR 0.5 billion in absolute values) as did imports from the US, Turkey, Indonesia and India.

The EU’s top 10 partners accounted for 91.7 % of the total imports of cultural goods into the EU in 2020.

Figure 7: Top 10 partners for extra-EU imports of cultural goods, EU, 2015 and 2020
(%)
Source: Eurostat (cult_trd_prt)

Source data for tables and graphs

International trade in cultural goods: tables and figures

Data sources

Eurostat compiles data on international trade in cultural goods from the Comext database, which contains statistics for EU Member States, EFTA countries, candidate countries and potential candidates.

The Comext database includes statistics on international trade in goods. Goods refer to all movable property (including gas and electricity) – products with a physical and/or tangible dimension. Therefore, international trade in licences and copyrights is excluded. Trade in goods includes all goods that add to or subtract from the stock of material resources of the reporting Member State by entering (imports) or leaving (exports) its economic territory, including goods for processing.

Extra-EU trade refers to transactions with all countries outside of the EU. These statistics are collected based on customs declarations.

Intra-EU trade refers to all transactions occurring within the EU between Member States. These statistics are based on the Intrastat system.

The trade balance is the difference between the value of the goods that a country (or another geographic or economic area such as the EU or the euro area) exports and the value of the goods that it imports. If exports exceed imports then the declaring country has a trade surplus, and the trade balance is positive. If imports exceed exports, then the declaring country has a trade deficit, and its trade balance is negative.

International trade statistics are classified according to several product classifications, which facilitate comparisons across the EU and in a wider international context. The most commonly used classifications include the harmonised system (HS) and the combined nomenclature (CN). The HS is used worldwide and is made up of headings with six-digit codes. The CN was designed to meet the specific needs of EU international trade statistics. It extends the headings to eight-digit codes, of which the first six are identical to those used in the HS.

An ESSnet-Culture final report (2012) established a list of internationally traded cultural goods using CN codes. The process for selecting cultural goods was based on identifying a list of eight-digit codes in 10 cultural domains. To be consistent and to facilitate the analysis of developments over time, the various product codes were grouped into 12 types of cultural products. The list of cultural aggregates and detailed information on them can be found in Annex 2 to the metadata on international trade in cultural goods.

Identification of cultural goods

The ESSnet-Culture final report (2012) created a framework for culture statistics based on cultural activities, which relate to the intersection between 10 cultural domains and 6 economic functions. Trade is an important aspect of culture statistics and one of the six economic functions (together with creation, production/publishing, preservation, education, and management/regulation).

Eurostat analysed the 10 cultural domains from a product perspective to produce a list of internationally traded cultural goods. Initially, the analysis focused on artistic creation, with the goal of covering products that convey and encompass symbolic, aesthetic, artistic and spiritual values (for example, works of art or crafts). The scope was later extended to various products that did not meet the criteria for artistic creation, but were considered to enable artistic expression or access to cultural content (for example, musical instruments, CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs). Cultural equipment in a wider sense (for example, televisions, CD players, and cameras) was excluded.

Based on these criteria, cultural goods and products were identified in seven domains (see Figure 8). The initial list of cultural goods (proposed in 2015) was revised in 2016 to better align the EU’s methodological framework with that proposed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). As a result, Eurostat’s culture statistics working group agreed to add jewellery (of precious and semi-precious metals and stones), some handmade ornamental articles and some goods with audiovisual content to the list of cultural goods.

More recently, the list underwent another revision to take into account changes brought about by a revision of the CN classification in 2017. In particular, this revision affected the codes related to support for audiovisual content by removing the distinction between support for sound (music) and for sound and vision (film, video and video games). Now, one grouping is presented for the support of all audiovisual content – music, films, videos and video games – under the broad heading of recorded media (covering the previous headings for music in manuscript, gramophone records, recorded magnetic tapes and optical media (CDs), and audiovisual and interactive media). Video game consoles (previously under audiovisual and interactive media) were split from the other codes and are now a separate category.

Figure 8: Cultural goods according to cultural domains
Source: Eurostat (Guide to Eurostat culture statistics — 2018 edition)

The impact of quasi-transit (the ‘Rotterdam effect’)

Member State trade flows may be overvalued because of quasi-transit trade. A country’s trade balance is not affected because quasi-transit trade should increase by the same amount as intra- and extra-EU trade flows: extra-EU imports are followed by dispatches to another Member State, and arrivals from a Member State are then followed by extra-EU exports to the final destination).

Quasi-transit trade principally affects Member States with large ports that trade goods at the EU’s external border. This phenomenon is particularly prominent in the Netherlands (hence it is known as the ’Rotterdam effect’) and Belgium. For example (and in line with EU rules), the Netherlands records goods arriving in Dutch ports that are destined for other Member States as extra-EU imports. Then when goods are released for free circulation, the goods are recorded as intra-EU dispatches (exports) from the Netherlands to other Member States.

Quasi-transit trade is known to affect imports more than exports. In some cases, customs clearance does not occur in the original Member State from which the exports originate but rather the Member State from which the goods leave the EU.

Context

Culture is one of Europe’s greatest assets: it is a source of values and identity and creates a sense of belonging. It also contributes to well-being, social cohesion and inclusion. The cultural and creative sectors can also trigger economic growth, job creation and international trade.

This is why culture is becoming more important in the EU. In line with Article 167 of the Treaty of Lisbon, the EU ‘shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common heritage to the fore’.

The EU supports these objectives through the Creative Europe programme and a number of policy actions set out in the Work Plan for Culture (2015-2018) and the Work Plan for Culture (2019-2022). The latter, adopted by EU culture ministers in November 2018, sets out the main priorities for European cooperation in cultural policymaking: sustainability in cultural heritage; cohesion and well-being; an ecosystem supporting artists, cultural and creative professionals and European content; gender equality; and international cultural relations.

The production of reliable, comparable and up-to-date cultural statistics, which provide a basis for sound cultural policymaking, is a cross-sectoral priority in the latest work plan. Eurostat compiles culture statistics from several different data collections to provide policymakers and other users with information on the main developments in the field of culture, covering issues such as education, employment, business, international trade, participation and consumption patterns.

Statistics on international trade in cultural goods assesses the value of cultural goods traded between Member States (intra-EU trade) and between the EU and non-member countries (extra-EU trade).

Notes

↑ The high share recorded in the Netherlands may be attributed in part to the impact of quasi-transit of goods, in other words, the so-called ‘Rotterdam effect’ (see the Data sources section for more details).