Share of imports that come from China in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Share of imports that come from China was 30.6% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
30.6%
Change on year
up 15.9%
World rank
22nd
of 206 countries
All-time high
30.6%
in 2025
All-time low
0.4%
in 1960
Years of data
63
1960–2025
Share of imports that come from China in Sierra Leone, 1960–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 30.6% for share of imports that come from china in 2025. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 15.9% on the previous year and up 173.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of imports that come from china in Sierra Leone peaked at 30.6% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 1960.
That places Sierra Leone 22nd out of 206 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of imports that come from China in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.4% | — |
| 1961 | 0.5% | +7.7% |
| 1962 | 0.6% | +33.5% |
| 1963 | 0.5% | -17.8% |
| 1964 | 0.9% | +75.5% |
| 1965 | 1.3% | +43.2% |
| 1966 | 1.7% | +32.5% |
| 1967 | 2.3% | +33.4% |
| 1968 | 2.8% | +22.5% |
| 1969 | 3.8% | +36.0% |
| 1970 | 2.7% | -30.7% |
| 1971 | 3.1% | +16.0% |
| 1972 | 3.8% | +25.0% |
| 1973 | 3.6% | -7.0% |
| 1974 | 5.5% | +52.7% |
| 1975 | 6.0% | +9.3% |
| 1976 | 6.1% | +1.8% |
| 1977 | 4.2% | -31.4% |
| 1981 | 4.2% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 2.6% | -37.6% |
| 1983 | 2.5% | -3.5% |
| 1984 | 2.8% | +11.2% |
| 1985 | 7.0% | +150.9% |
| 1986 | 3.9% | -44.9% |
| 1987 | 2.8% | -27.6% |
| 1988 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 2.6% | -7.4% |
| 1991 | 2.8% | +7.8% |
| 1992 | 3.5% | +26.2% |
| 1993 | 7.2% | +103.7% |
| 1994 | 3.9% | -45.7% |
| 1995 | 2.0% | -47.9% |
| 1996 | 2.6% | +29.0% |
| 1997 | 2.0% | -24.1% |
| 1998 | 2.6% | +31.5% |
| 1999 | 2.5% | -3.1% |
| 2000 | 5.3% | +109.7% |
| 2001 | 3.2% | -39.7% |
| 2002 | 1.6% | -51.3% |
| 2003 | 1.6% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 2.9% | +88.0% |
| 2005 | 3.2% | +7.5% |
| 2006 | 4.1% | +28.7% |
| 2007 | 5.8% | +42.0% |
| 2008 | 6.5% | +12.7% |
| 2009 | 4.7% | -27.6% |
| 2010 | 8.3% | +75.7% |
| 2011 | 12.0% | +45.8% |
| 2012 | 13.0% | +8.3% |
| 2013 | 9.3% | -28.6% |
| 2014 | 8.0% | -14.2% |
| 2015 | 11.2% | +39.8% |
| 2016 | 11.7% | +4.8% |
| 2017 | 15.6% | +33.4% |
| 2018 | 18.3% | +16.9% |
| 2019 | 19.3% | +5.5% |
| 2020 | 22.0% | +14.3% |
| 2021 | 19.3% | -12.4% |
| 2022 | 20.2% | +4.7% |
| 2023 | 22.9% | +13.3% |
| 2024 | 26.4% | +15.4% |
| 2025 | 30.6% | +15.9% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 30.6% is above the median for low income countries, which is 22.7%, 1.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 30.6% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 20.0%, 1.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.5% | 0.4% | 3.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.4% | 2.7% | 6.1% | 8 |
| 1980s | 3.5% | 2.5% | 7.0% | 9 |
| 1990s | 3.2% | 2.0% | 7.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.9% | 1.6% | 6.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.7% | 8.0% | 19.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.6% | 19.3% | 30.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More economy & growth data for Sierra Leone
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate -24.83 % change on previous year (2024)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.55 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 4.53 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate -18.54 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0324 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 27.41 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate -22.43 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0236 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 20.01 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of imports that come from china in Sierra Leone?
- Share of imports that come from china in Sierra Leone was 30.6% in 2025, according to International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of imports that come from china recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 30.6% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of imports that come from china recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 1960.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for share of imports that come from china?
- Sierra Leone ranks 22nd out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of imports that come from china rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 173.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of imports that come from China. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Percentage of a country's total goods imports, including freight and insurance costs, that come from China.