External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP in Greece
Greece: External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP was -4.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising
External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP in Greece, 1960–2025
Source: National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Greece recorded -4.5% for external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.5% on the previous year and down 403.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp in Greece peaked at -0.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, -11.5%, in 2008.
Greece ranks 104th of 191 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP in Greece, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | -4.1% | — |
| 1961 | -4.1% | -0.3% |
| 1962 | -5.8% | +42.5% |
| 1963 | -5.6% | -3.9% |
| 1964 | -8.4% | +50.0% |
| 1965 | -8.7% | +3.4% |
| 1966 | -5.7% | -34.8% |
| 1967 | -5.6% | -0.4% |
| 1968 | -7.1% | +24.9% |
| 1969 | -7.3% | +3.4% |
| 1970 | -6.8% | -7.4% |
| 1971 | -6.4% | -5.0% |
| 1972 | -6.4% | +0.2% |
| 1973 | -7.7% | +19.4% |
| 1974 | -6.2% | -18.9% |
| 1975 | -6.2% | -0.0% |
| 1976 | -6.0% | -3.9% |
| 1977 | -5.9% | -1.2% |
| 1978 | -5.1% | -13.9% |
| 1979 | -4.4% | -13.3% |
| 1980 | -5.0% | +12.9% |
| 1981 | -3.4% | -31.9% |
| 1982 | -6.5% | +91.4% |
| 1983 | -7.3% | +12.1% |
| 1984 | -6.4% | -12.4% |
| 1985 | -7.2% | +12.8% |
| 1986 | -6.3% | -12.2% |
| 1987 | -5.2% | -18.4% |
| 1988 | -6.1% | +18.3% |
| 1989 | -7.9% | +30.3% |
| 1990 | -9.6% | +20.8% |
| 1991 | -9.3% | -3.6% |
| 1992 | -8.1% | -12.0% |
| 1993 | -8.0% | -1.2% |
| 1994 | -6.4% | -20.0% |
| 1995 | -7.4% | +14.7% |
| 1996 | -8.2% | +10.9% |
| 1997 | -6.7% | -18.3% |
| 1998 | -9.5% | +42.1% |
| 1999 | -9.3% | -1.8% |
| 2000 | -11.1% | +18.7% |
| 2001 | -10.5% | -5.0% |
| 2002 | -9.3% | -11.9% |
| 2003 | -10.1% | +9.3% |
| 2004 | -8.6% | -15.2% |
| 2005 | -8.4% | -2.7% |
| 2006 | -9.6% | +14.1% |
| 2007 | -11.0% | +15.4% |
| 2008 | -11.5% | +4.6% |
| 2009 | -8.9% | -22.7% |
| 2010 | -7.5% | -16.3% |
| 2011 | -5.7% | -23.9% |
| 2012 | -4.5% | -21.4% |
| 2013 | -2.3% | -48.5% |
| 2014 | -1.4% | -39.0% |
| 2015 | -0.9% | -35.9% |
| 2016 | -1.3% | +44.5% |
| 2017 | -1.3% | +1.9% |
| 2018 | -2.0% | +49.3% |
| 2019 | -1.5% | -25.6% |
| 2020 | -7.4% | +403.1% |
| 2021 | -7.5% | +1.3% |
| 2022 | -9.7% | +28.9% |
| 2023 | -4.8% | -50.4% |
| 2024 | -5.6% | +15.9% |
| 2025 | -4.5% | -18.5% |
Greece compared with similar countries
- Greece's -4.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 2.2%. (72 countries reporting)
- Greece's -4.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.8%. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP in Greece changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -403.1% | -1.5% | -7.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | -6.2% | -8.7% | -4.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | -6.1% | -7.7% | -4.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | -6.1% | -7.9% | -3.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | -8.3% | -9.6% | -6.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | -9.9% | -11.5% | -8.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | -2.8% | -7.5% | -0.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | -6.6% | -9.7% | -4.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Greece
More economy & growth data for Greece
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.67 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.25 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 181.25 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0108 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 289.76 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 167.82 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0079 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 211.58 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0091 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp in Greece?
- External balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp in Greece was -4.5% in 2025, according to National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp recorded in Greece?
- The highest recorded value was -0.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp recorded in Greece?
- The lowest recorded value was -11.5% in 2008.
- How does Greece rank for external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp?
- Greece ranks 104th out of 191 countries with data for 2025.
- Is external balance on goods and services as a percent of gdp rising or falling in Greece?
- Over the last ten years it is down 403.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Greece data come from?
- The figures come from National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of External balance on goods and services as a percent of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Exports of goods and services minus imports of goods and services divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.