High-Tech Exports Surge 9% in 2024, but Uncertainty Looms Amid Trade Tensions
March 31, 2025
Intellectual property ensures that innovations in high-tech industries, such as automotive, semiconductor or aeorspace technologies, as well as pharmaceutical drugs, are adequately protected and effectively leveraged at the international stage.
In 2024, high-tech exports outpaced overall merchandise trade, rising by close to 9%, according to a joint analysis by Trade Data Monitor and WIPO. This growth, largely driven by advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) has boosted demand for silicon chips in a post-pandemic economy.
Some of the other key findings are:
- China remains the world’s number 1 exporter of high-tech goods.
- The United States (US) experienced the biggest increase in high-tech exports in 2024. The 2nd biggest increase for a major high-tech exporter in 2024 was the Republic of Korea.
- In Europe, Eastern countries such as the Czech Republic outperformed stalwarts such as France and Germany in high-tech export growth.
- In 2024, a boom in electric vehicles (EVs) has fueled high-tech exports. Germany consolidated its edge as the world’s top exporter of electric vehicles. China, the Republic of Korea and the US lost their EV market share.
The World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) ensures that innovations in high-tech industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI), biotechnology and semiconductor manufacturing, are adequately protected and effectively leveraged at the international stage, to foster a fair and competitive trading environment.
Figure 1: World High-Tech Exports (Annual growth rate, %, 2017-2024*)
Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from World Trade Organization, Trade Data Monitor LLC
Note: *2024 projected based on current data
Data Highlights
Chinese high-tech exports increased 3.4% to USD 825.2 billion in 2024. And China is the leading high-tech exporter by far (see Figures 2 and 3). Sales of its data processing machines rose 3% to USD 102.2 billion (see Figure 4). The big jump was in the shipment electronic components. Memory chips or circuits leaped 23.6% to USD 68.8 billion, and processors, controllers and electronic integrated circuits jumped 14.4% to USD 57.1 billion (see Figure 4).
Figure 2: Top High-Tech Exporters (USD Billions): 2000, 2010, 2020, 2023, 2024*
Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from Trade Data Monitor LLC (5 February 2025)
Note: *2024 projected based on current data
Exports of the Republic of Korea made a strong bounce back from decline, increasing to USD 200.4 billion (see Figure 2). Japanese exports stayed flat at USD 105.1 billion. Viet Nam’s exports rose 9.4% to USD 76.5 billion.
U.S. high-tech exports rose strongly in 2024 by 12.6% to USD 385.3 billion. Shipments to Mexico increased 21.3% to USD 58.3 billion, and sales to China rose 17.7% to USD 30 billion. There was a noticeable boom in U.S. exports to Asian countries throughout. Shipments to Japan rose 30.3% to USD 17.6 billion, and exports to Malaysia rose 80.1% to USD 12.6 billion. The biggest U.S. exports were processor and controllers, electronic integrated circuits, up 29.2% to USD 32.4 billion.
In turn, Europe saw overall declines. Germany’s high-tech exports fell 10.6% to USD 266.3 billion. Second, France’s high-tech exports also fell, declining 1.7% to USD 117.9 billion. Across Europe, many other countries suffered declines in high-tech exports.
There were some exceptions, notably in Eastern Europe. The Czech Republic’s high-tech exports increased 13.4% to USD 51.9 billion. The Czech Republic’s top high-tech export: smartphones, which grew 18.4% to USD 12.7 billion. Irish high-tech exports also performed well, improving 24.4% to USD 115.9 billion.
Emerging high-tech exporters: Singapore’s high-tech exports rose 13% to USD 228.1 billion, thanks to a 19.5% jump to USD 58 billion in shipments of processors and controllers, electronic integrated circuits. Thailand’s high-tech exports rose 14% to USD 61.7 billion, thanks to big jumps in shipments to the U.S. and China.
Figure 3: Top High-Tech Exporters (USD Billions): 2012-2024*
Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from Trade Data Monitor LLC (5 February 2025)
Note: * 2024 EU data projected based on current data
Figure 4: China’s Top High-Tech Exports (USD Billions): 2020, 2023, 2024
Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from Trade Data Monitor LLC (5 February 2025)
Future Trends
The two defining trends of high-tech trade for the rest of the decade will be chips, or circuits, and electric vehicles.
Circuit Boom: Increasingly, global high-tech trade is driven by the massive booming trade in chips and electronic integrated circuits. In 2024, exports of the world’s top 10 suppliers increased 9% to USD 77.8 billion from USD 70.8 billion. The top import market, by far, was China, which ramped up imports 10.5% to USD 386.6 billion. The second biggest market was Singapore, which increased purchases 11.5 to USD 97.9 billion. The U.S. notched up imports 12.3% to USD 40.2 billion.
Electric vehicles: Innovations in batteries, steering and body design have boosted global trade in electric vehicles, but new tariffs and nervous consumers dented sales in 2024. As Figure 5 illustrates, the world’s top exporter Germany stands at USD 40.4 billion for the first 11 months of 2024. Other top exporters such as China, Belgium, and the Republic of Korea lost export sales in 2024. One emerging major exporter of electric vehicles is Mexico. Its exports boomed to USD 7.2 billion during the first 11 months from under USD 1 billion in 2023.
Exports of airplanes, spacecraft and goods to produce electric energy and nuclear reactors boomed too.
Figure 5: Top Electric Cars Exporters (USD Billions): 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024*
Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from Trade Data Monitor LLC (14 Dec 2023)
Notes: *2024 projected based on current data except for the Republic of China, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America
Background
The Global Innovation Index (GII) uses two indicators on high-tech trade (indicators 5.3.2 and 6.3.3) which are obtained through the United Nations Comtrade Database; the World Trade Organization, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and Trade Data Monitor (TDM). Trade Data Monitor specializes in providing trade data for economic research. It obtains, processes, and publishes customs data from national governments around the world, for monthly publication.