Nicaragua2021 Economic Complexity Trade : -1.03, Rank 108 of 131
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2021 Economic Complexity Research : -1.49, Rank 139 of 140
2021 Product Exports | Imports: $6.95B | $8.65B, 110 of 226 | 113 of 226
2021 Per Capita Product Exports | Imports: $1.04k | $1.29k, 129 of 219 | 144 of 219
Overview In 2021, Nicaragua was the number 126 economy in the world in terms of GDP (current US$), the number 110 in total exports, the number 113 in total imports, the number 140 economy in terms of GDP per capita (current US$) and the number 108 most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI) .
Exports The top exports of Nicaragua are Gold ($989M), Knit T-shirts ($729M), Insulated Wire ($587M), Coffee ($558M), and Frozen Bovine Meat ($369M), exporting mostly to United States ($3.9B), Mexico ($771M), El Salvador ($390M), Honduras ($332M), and Costa Rica ($190M).
Imports The top imports of Nicaragua are Refined Petroleum ($696M), Light Rubberized Knitted Fabric ($501M), Packaged Medicaments ($322M), Insulated Wire ($219M), and Knit T-shirts ($196M), importing mostly from United States ($2B), China ($1.12B), Mexico ($859M), Guatemala ($841M), and Costa Rica ($576M).
Location Nicaragua borders Costa Rica and Honduras by land and Colombia and El Salvador by sea.
The following section uses the most recent trade data from partners of Nicaragua.
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.
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.
Top Export (2021): Gold, $989M
Top Destination (2021): United States, $3.9B
In 2021, Nicaragua exported a total of $6.95B, making it the number 110 exporter in the world. During the last five reported years the exports of Nicaragua have changed by $2.02B from $4.93B in 2016 to $6.95B in 2021.
The most recent exports are led by Gold ($989M), Knit T-shirts ($729M), Insulated Wire ($587M), Coffee ($558M), and Frozen Bovine Meat ($369M). The most common destination for the exports of Nicaragua are United States ($3.9B), Mexico ($771M), El Salvador ($390M), Honduras ($332M), and Costa Rica ($190M).
Fastest Growing Export Markets (2020 - 2021)
Fastest Growing Import Markets (2020 - 2021)
Nicaragua Exports Services (2019): $907M
Nicaragua Imports Services (2019): $843M
In 2019, Nicaragua exported $907M worth of services. The top services exported by Nicaragua in 2019 were Personal travel ($503M), Computer and information services ($186M), Government services, n.i.e. ($107M), Transportation ($60.2M), and Other business services ($32.9M).
The top services imported by Nicaragua in 2019 were Transportation ($394M), Personal travel ($177M), Other business services ($106M), Insurance services ($81.3M), and Government services, n.i.e. ($46.6M).
Nicaragua has a high level of specialization in Ground Nut Oil (144), Non-Knit Men's Undergarments (131), Knit Women's Shirts (114), Ground Nuts (74.2), and Coffee (47). Specialization is measured using RCA, an index that takes the ratio between Nicaragua observed and expected exports in each product.
The highest complexity exports of Nicaragua according to the product complexity index (PCI) are Turbines; steam and other vapour turbines (0.53), Candles, tapers and the like (0.31), Packing cases, boxes, crates, drums and similar packings, of wood; cable-drums of wood; pallets, box pallets and other load boards, of wood; pallet collars of wood (0.29), Birds' eggs, not in shell; egg yolks, fresh, dried, cooked by steaming or boiling in water, moulded, frozen or otherwise preserved, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter (0.18), and Colours; artists, students, or signboard painters, modifying tints, amusement colours and the like; in tablets, tubes, jars, bottles, pan or in similar forms or packings (0.18). PCI measures the knowledge intensity of a product by considering the knowledge intensity of its exporters.
The top export opportunities for Nicaragua according to the relatedness index, were Tropical Fruits (0.18), Packing Bags (0.17), Perfume Plants (0.17), Fish Fillets (0.17), and Pepper (0.16). Relatedness measures the distance between a country's current exports and each product. The barchart show only products that Nicaragua 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.
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.
During the last 20 years Nicaragua's economy has become relatively less complex, moving from the nullth to the 108th 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.
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