Close to thirty percent of exports in the Netherlands involve transport equipment and machinery. Much of this goes to Austria. However, many of these exports also go as far as to the African continent and the United States as well.
Surprising to many is the fact that the Netherlands also does quite a bit of exporting in the area of petroleum and mineral based fuels. In fact, the mineral fuel accounts for close to one quarter of all Dutch exports.
The Netherlands is also one of the largest exporters of food and agricultural products on the planet. This is in large part due to its technological prowess in the area of agrofoods. Only the United States tops the Netherlands in terms of food exports. These exports make up 11 percent of Dutch exports and a whopping one-quarter of all those in Europe. Interesting fact is that the Netherlands is now (since 2013) the largest exporter of tomatoes in the world (the second being Mexico).
They are the number one exporter of tulips in the whole world too. The primary reason for this is that the Netherlands is one of the few places on the globe where these highly sought after plants are able to grow best.
Other top exports from the Netherlands consist of shoes, assorted footwear and clothing, totaling around 10 percent and pharmaceuticals at approximately 5 percent.
Now all this may lead one to ask, who are the main export trading partners with the Netherlands. Well, the answer is Germany at around 24 percent, next door neighbor Belgium with about 12, France and the United Kingdom. However, they do quite a bit of trade with the United States, Italy and Japan too.
While the Netherlands – like much of the world – was hit by the global economic crisis, they still maintain a sound and large economy, the 17th biggest in the world. And exports such as those listed above make up a good part of that economy.
