Share of imports that come from China in Somalia
Somalia: Share of imports that come from China was 26.2% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Share of imports that come from China in Somalia, 1962–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, share of imports that come from china in Somalia stood at 26.2%.
That represents a change of up 1.6% on the previous year and up 50.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of imports that come from china in Somalia peaked at 27.6% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 1998.
That places Somalia 43rd 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 Somalia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 0.6% | — |
| 1963 | 5.7% | +853.2% |
| 1964 | 1.1% | -80.9% |
| 1965 | 4.6% | +328.3% |
| 1968 | 3.2% | -30.5% |
| 1969 | 2.2% | -30.8% |
| 1970 | 2.1% | -4.1% |
| 1971 | 1.8% | -18.0% |
| 1972 | 6.2% | +255.1% |
| 1973 | 23.2% | +271.6% |
| 1974 | 9.3% | -60.1% |
| 1975 | 7.9% | -14.4% |
| 1977 | 7.1% | -11.0% |
| 1978 | 3.8% | -46.7% |
| 1980 | 2.3% | -39.8% |
| 1981 | 1.5% | -34.9% |
| 1982 | 2.7% | +86.6% |
| 1983 | 0.8% | -71.7% |
| 1984 | 1.1% | +40.0% |
| 1985 | 1.9% | +70.7% |
| 1986 | 3.0% | +63.8% |
| 1987 | 0.9% | -70.1% |
| 1988 | 6.7% | +635.7% |
| 1989 | 5.1% | -24.4% |
| 1990 | 2.5% | -51.5% |
| 1991 | 0.4% | -83.8% |
| 1992 | 2.9% | +617.9% |
| 1993 | 0.3% | -90.6% |
| 1994 | 0.7% | +173.3% |
| 1995 | 0.2% | -78.6% |
| 1996 | 0.2% | +24.5% |
| 1997 | 0.2% | +1.7% |
| 1998 | 0.1% | -56.7% |
| 1999 | 0.2% | +145.9% |
| 2000 | 0.8% | +270.0% |
| 2001 | 0.6% | -27.4% |
| 2002 | 0.8% | +39.9% |
| 2003 | 1.7% | +107.7% |
| 2004 | 3.3% | +99.7% |
| 2005 | 4.8% | +45.2% |
| 2006 | 5.7% | +18.3% |
| 2007 | 5.3% | -6.0% |
| 2008 | 5.1% | -3.8% |
| 2009 | 9.5% | +85.9% |
| 2010 | 7.2% | -24.1% |
| 2011 | 6.5% | -10.3% |
| 2012 | 6.5% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 9.4% | +43.2% |
| 2014 | 12.9% | +37.6% |
| 2015 | 17.4% | +34.9% |
| 2016 | 20.5% | +18.1% |
| 2017 | 19.4% | -5.1% |
| 2018 | 25.6% | +31.6% |
| 2019 | 24.1% | -5.7% |
| 2020 | 26.8% | +11.0% |
| 2021 | 27.6% | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 26.8% | -3.1% |
| 2023 | 27.4% | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 25.8% | -5.9% |
| 2025 | 26.2% | +1.6% |
Somalia compared with similar countries
- Somalia's 26.2% is above the median for low income countries, which is 22.7%, 1.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Somalia's 26.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 20.0%, 1.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of imports that come from China in Somalia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | +853.2% | 0.6% | 5.7% |
| 1988 | +635.7% | 0.9% | 6.7% |
| 1992 | +617.9% | 0.4% | 2.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.9% | 0.6% | 5.7% | 6 |
| 1970s | 7.7% | 1.8% | 23.2% | 8 |
| 1980s | 2.6% | 0.8% | 6.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.8% | 0.1% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.8% | 0.6% | 9.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.0% | 6.5% | 25.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.7% | 25.8% | 27.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Somalia
More economy & growth data for Somalia
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate -2.75 % change on previous year (2024)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.52 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 4.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 25.66 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0238 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 15.71 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 19.66 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0174 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 11.47 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 Somalia?
- Share of imports that come from china in Somalia was 26.2% 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 Somalia?
- The highest recorded value was 27.6% in 2021.
- What is the lowest share of imports that come from china recorded in Somalia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 1998.
- How does Somalia rank for share of imports that come from china?
- Somalia ranks 43rd out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of imports that come from china rising or falling in Somalia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 50.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Somalia 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.
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About this data
Percentage of a country's total goods imports, including freight and insurance costs, that come from China.