Overview In 2021, Cameroon was the number 86 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 121 in total exports, the number 117 in total imports, the number 147 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 121 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) .

Exports The top exports of Cameroon are Crude Petroleum ($1.87B), Petroleum Gas ($795M), Cocoa Beans ($563M), Sawn Wood ($437M), and Gold ($312M), exporting mostly to China ($1.43B), Netherlands ($668M), India ($421M), Italy ($350M), and United Arab Emirates ($278M).

Imports The top imports of Cameroon are Special Purpose Ships ($495M), Refined Petroleum ($382M), Other Furniture ($333M), Rice ($327M), and Wheat ($256M), importing mostly from China ($2.71B), France ($621M), Nigeria ($551M), India ($391M), and Russia ($308M).

Location Cameroon borders Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria by land.

Flow
View
Y-AXIS SCALE

The following section uses the most recent trade data from partners of Cameroon.

Disclaimer: data is presented based on availability and only countries that use the harmonized system are being shown.

*All data is converted to USD using January 2020 exchange rates when data is reported in local currency.

Flow
Color
Depth

The data obtained is mirror data. The trade of countries that do not report current data can be reconstructed based on data reported by partner countries with current data available.

*All data is converted to USD using January 2020 exchange rates when data is reported in local currency.

Historical Data

#permalink to section
Flow
Color
Depth

Top Export (2021): Crude Petroleum, $1.87B

Top Destination (2021): China, $1.43B

In 2021, Cameroon exported a total of $4.92B, making it the number 121 exporter in the world. During the last five reported years the exports of Cameroon have changed by $1.09B from $3.84B in 2016 to $4.92B in 2021.

The most recent exports are led by Crude Petroleum ($1.87B), Petroleum Gas ($795M), Cocoa Beans ($563M), Sawn Wood ($437M), and Gold ($312M). The most common destination for the exports of Cameroon are China ($1.43B), Netherlands ($668M), India ($421M), Italy ($350M), and United Arab Emirates ($278M).

Explore Visualizations

Flow
View

Fastest Growing Export Markets (2020 - 2021)

Fastest Growing Import Markets (2020 - 2021)

Cameroon Exports Services (2018): $2.12B

Cameroon Imports Services (2018): $2.7B

In 2018, Cameroon exported $2.12B worth of services. The top services exported by Cameroon in 2018 were Transportation ($666M), Personal travel ($348M), Other business services ($310M), Business travel ($233M), and Computer and information services ($144M).

The top services imported by Cameroon in 2018 were Transportation ($989M), Other business services ($566M), Personal travel ($375M), Business travel ($312M), and Insurance services ($142M).

Economic Complexity

#permalink to section

Most Specialized Products by RCA Index

#permalink to section

Cameroon has a high level of specialization in Cocoa Beans (251), Cocoa Paste (83.7), Cocoa Butter (74.9), Rough Wood (45.7), and Veneer Sheets (40.3). Specialization is measured using RCA, an index that takes the ratio between Cameroon observed and expected exports in each product.

Most Complex Products by PCI

#permalink to section

The highest complexity exports of Cameroon according to the product complexity index (PCI) are Soups and Broths (-0.52), Hypochlorites (-0.56), Veneer Sheets (-0.61), Cocoa Paste (-0.66), and Frozen Vegetables (-0.8). PCI measures the knowledge intensity of a product by considering the knowledge intensity of its exporters.

Export Opportunities by Relatedness

#permalink to section

The top export opportunities for Cameroon according to the relatedness index, were Manganese Ore (0.079), Tin Ores (0.078), Coconuts, Brazil Nuts, and Cashews (0.072), Palm Oil (0.069), and Niobium, Tantalum, Vanadium and Zirconium Ore (0.066). Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product. The barchart show only products that Cameroon is not specialized in.

The product space is a network connecting products that are likely to be co-exported. The product space can be used to predict future exports, since countries are more likely to start exporting products that are related to current exports. Relatedness measures the distance between a product, and all of the products a country currently specializes in.

Relatedness Space

#permalink to section

This network shows the products most related to the production structure of Cameroon. These are products that tend to be co-exported with the products that Cameroon exports. Higher relatedness values ​​indicate greater knowledge, which predicts a greater probability of exporting that product in the future.

Diversification Frontier

#permalink to section
Filter
Depth

The Complexity-Relatedness diagram compares the risk vs strategic value of a country's potential export oppotunities. Relatedness is predictive of the probability that a country increases its exports in a product. Complexity, is associated with higher levels of income, economic growth, less income inequality, and lower greenhouse emissions.

Economic Complexity Ranking

#permalink to section
Scale

During the last 20 years Cameroon's⁩ ⁨economy has become relatively less complex, moving from the ⁩⁨85th to the 121st⁩ position in the ECI rank.

These economic complexity rankings use 6 digit exports classified according to the HS96 classification. We consider only countries with population of at least 1 million and exports of at least $1 billion, and products with world trade over $500 million. To explore different rankings and vary these parameters visit the custom rankings section.

Explore Rankings