Exports from Flanders reached record-high levels in 2021, driven by both the economic recovery following the 2020 pandemic and the region's production of Covid-19 vaccines.
According to Flanders Investment & Trade's latest report, Flemish companies exported goods worth €380.5 billion last year, increasing from 2020 by a quarter (27.6%), and 17% more than in 2019 - just before the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit. Exports in 2021 even exceeded the previous record amount of 2018 by 16%.
"Flanders is a very open economy. Exports and imports, therefore, follow a dynamic pattern, with periods of crisis alternating with periods of growth. Flemish companies deal with this in an inventive and resilient manner," Jan Jambon, Flemish Minister-President, said.
"This becomes clear when you see how the Flemish business and export world - after challenging Brexit and coronavirus times - is putting itself back on the map with historically high export figures."
The growth of Flemish exports. Credit: Flanders Investment & Trade
Key growth factors
This rise was in part driven by the economic recovery following 2020 — when the coronavirus crisis first hit — which saw both the demand and prices of many products increase.
Flanders' central role in the production and worldwide distribution of Covid-19 vaccines also had a major effect. Exports of pharmaceuticals, chemicals and mineral products grew by 42.4% in 2021, while vaccines alone accounted for an increase of €25.3 billion in exports. Even without these exports, total Flemish exports would have risen by 19.4%.
A production line at Pfizer Puurs in Antwerp. Credit: Pfizer
Meanwhile, as a result of Brexit and the decline in exports to the UK (-2.6%), the increase in exports for the automobile industry rose by only 1.9%. This makes the UK one of the few declines among the top destinations for Flemish exports.
The region's export growth surpassed the overall European average (+18.9%) and grew faster than the Walloon Region (+19.7%) and the Brussels Capital Region (+2.7%). Last year, Flanders accounted for just under 82% of Belgian exports.
These figures highlight the fact that Flanders is benefitting from the rising trend of world trade, which, with a turnover of $28.5 trillion dollars (€25.8 trillion) in exchanged goods and services, also set a record in 2021.
Of the total exports, 64.5% went to EU member states, 11.1% to non-EU European countries and 24.4% to the rest of the world.
Predictions for future
The new export record comes about despite various global challenges, including disruptions in the production and distribution chain that Flemish businesses faced last year, and the ongoing issue of supply shortages and rising raw material prices.
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In 2022, the geopolitical and economic impact of the war in Ukraine threatens to disrupt the improving world trade. According to Flanders Investment & Trade, the first figures on the impact on Flemish exports and imports are expected in May this year.
"How Flemish exports and imports will evolve in 2022 is highly uncertain due to the global impact of the war in Ukraine. International trade will need time to reach new equilibria. Resilience, technological innovation, market diversification and risk spreading will only become more crucial in the coming period," Claire Tillekaerts, CEO of Flanders Investment & Trade, said.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) already predicted that global economic growth will be a full percentage point lower than estimated before the conflict, while global inflation - already at an all-time high since the beginning of 2022 - is also forecast to rise by a further 2.5%.
