Merchandise trade

China, the United States, Germany and Japan remained the top four traders for both merchandise exports and imports in 2015. China was the leading exporter, with total exports of US$ 2.27 trillion and a 14 per cent share of world exports, followed by the United States (US$ 1.50 trillion, 9 per cent), Germany (US$ 1.33 trillion, 8 per cent) and Japan (US$ 624 billion, 4 per cent). The fifth biggest exporter was the Netherlands, with total exports of US$ 567 billion, representing a 3 per cent share of world exports.