According to Eurostat, the countries of the European Union exported in 2022 a record amount of 287 billion euros of pharmaceutical and medical products, against 235 billion euros in 2021 and only 50 billion euros in 2002. imported for a value of 112 billion euros, against 100 billion euros in 2021 and 32 billion euros in 2002.
In total, the European Union generated an equally record surplus of 175 billion euros in this sector last year. This has increased tenfold since 2002, when it stood at 18 billion euros.
Germany is the first exporting country of medical products outside the European Union, with an amount of 68 billion euros, ahead of Belgium (56 billion euros), Ireland (42 billion euros) , the Netherlands and Italy (each €22 billion). The United States is for its part the first destination country for exports of European medical products (33%), ahead of Switzerland (13%), the United Kingdom (7%), China and Japan, each 6%.
Exports of the French pharmaceutical sector amounted last year to 38.2 billion euros, mostly (60%) to other EU countries. They were up 8.2% compared to 2021, while imports stood at 35.2 billion euros, up 7.7%, resulting in a surplus of 3 billion.
Finally, according to WTO data for 2021, the medical products sector accounted for 5.9% of world trade worth $2.654 billion. Europe leads by far in terms of drug exports, with a market share reaching 77.7%, far ahead of Asia (11%) and North America (10%).
