The brave new world of Brexit - revisited
Published on April 29, 2017
The current mood in Brussels is to punish the UK from exiting from the European Union, following an admittedly botched but, nevertheless, very democratic instrument, the infamous referendum. If emotions are stronger than facts, the real causes and their consequences must be looked at closely before the final judgment comes.
Fact: According to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI), Germany is the third largest export economy in the world and the third most complex economy. In 2015, Germany exported $1.24T and imported $989B, resulting in a positive trade balance of $252B. In 2015 the GDP of Germany was $3.36T and its GDP per capita was $48k.
The top exports of Germany are Cars ($153B), Vehicle Parts ($56.2B), Packaged Medicaments ($50.3B), Planes, Helicopters, and/or Spacecraft ($32.8B) and Human or Animal Blood ($16.3B), using the 1992 revision of the HS (Harmonized System) classification. Its top imports are Cars ($46.7B), Vehicle Parts ($34.9B), Crude Petroleum ($30.5B), Computers ($26.1B) and Packaged Medicaments ($24.1B).
The top export destinations of Germany are the United States ($122B), France ($101B), the United Kingdom ($93.9B), China ($78.6B) and the Netherlands ($72.1B). The top import origins are China ($97.4B), the Netherlands ($91.3B), France ($72.3B), the United States ($63.3B) and Italy ($51.5B).
Fact: According to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI), the United Kingdom is the 9th largest export economy in the world and the 11th most complex economy. In 2015, the United Kingdom exported $425B and imported $606B, resulting in a negative trade balance of $181B. In 2015, the GDP of the United Kingdom was $2.86T and its GDP per capita was $41.8k.
The top exports of the United Kingdom are Gold ($41.6B), Cars ($40.8B), Packaged Medicaments ($19.9B), Gas Turbines ($14.7B) and Refined Petroleum ($13.2B), using the 1992 revision of the HS (Harmonized System) classification. Its top imports are Cars ($49.9B), Packaged Medicaments ($21B), Refined Petroleum ($20.2B), Crude Petroleum ($17.3B) and Vehicle Parts ($15B).
The top export destinations of the United Kingdom are the United States ($54.7B), Germany ($39.5B), Switzerland ($32.5B), China ($27.6B) and the Netherlands ($23.9B). The top import origins are Germany ($93.9B), China ($62.8B), the United States ($44.8B), the Netherlands ($44.4B) and France ($37.6B).
We apologise for the heap of numbers, but numbers do matter. So before the UK is roasted over the Brussels grill, EU individual Member States should look closely at their bilateral trade with the UK.
It will also be up to each economic sector to voice its own concern to the European Commission.
Source: The Economic Complexity Observatory: An Analytical Tool for Understanding the Dynamics of Economic Development.