External balance on goods and services in Malawi
Malawi: External balance on goods and services was -18.1% in 2025. ▬ Flat
External balance on goods and services in Malawi, 2017–2025
Source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, external balance on goods and services in Malawi stood at -18.1%. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.
The figure is up 6.4% on the previous year and up 9.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, external balance on goods and services in Malawi peaked at -18.1% in 2025 and was at its lowest, -20.9%, in 2022.
That places Malawi 154th out of 193 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
External balance on goods and services in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | -20.0% | — |
| 2018 | -20.2% | +1.4% |
| 2019 | -18.2% | -10.0% |
| 2020 | -19.0% | +4.4% |
| 2021 | -19.2% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | -20.9% | +9.2% |
| 2023 | -19.9% | -4.7% |
| 2024 | -19.3% | -3.1% |
| 2025 | -18.1% | -6.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | -19.5% | -20.2% | -18.2% | 3 |
| 2020s | -19.4% | -20.9% | -18.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More economy & growth data for Malawi
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.07 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 4.6 Percent per annum (2029)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate 25.33 % change on previous year (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 186.44 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per capita 125,196 current LCU per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), annual growth rate 51.23 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1573 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per capita 105.65 current US$ per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current LCU), annual growth rate 52.31 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current LCU), per unit of GDP 275.46 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is external balance on goods and services in Malawi?
- External balance on goods and services in Malawi was -18.1% in 2025, according to Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks.
- What is the highest external balance on goods and services recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was -18.1% in 2025.
- What is the lowest external balance on goods and services recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was -20.9% in 2022.
- How does Malawi rank for external balance on goods and services?
- Malawi ranks 154th out of 193 countries with data for 2025.
- Is external balance on goods and services rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks, published as part of External balance on goods and services (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The balance of international trade in goods and services is the difference between the exports and imports of goods and services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.