Sports goods trade grows threefold to hit $64bn: WTO
GENEVA, July 25, 2024
Sports goods trade has seen a massive boost in recent years, with increased spending by a variety of consumers, ranging from fitness fanatics to aspiring Olympic athletes.
Since 1996, trade in sports goods has tripled, with annual imports reaching nearly $64 billion in 2022. Over this period, China has emerged as the leading exporter, while the European Union and the United States have become major importers, according to data released by the WTO Blog on Wednesday.
Over the past three decades, the global market for sports goods has seen remarkable growth. Between 1996 and 2022, annual imports surged from $15 billion to almost $64 billion. This significant increase not only reflects the global trend of increased trade but also changes in consumer behaviour.
The global landscape of sports goods imports is dominated by the Americas and Europe, which together account for nearly three-quarters of total imports. The Americas lead with $26.2 billion in imports but face a relatively high average tariff rate of 19.9%.
Europe follows with $19.8 billion in imports and a lower tariff rate of 9.9%. Asia ranks third in imports, at $15 billion, benefiting from the lowest tariff rate, at 7.2%.
Figures show that sports goods imports grew steadily from 1996 to 2022, with two exceptions. A significant contraction occurred in 2009, possibly as a result of the 2008 global financial crisis, while 2021 saw explosive growth as part of the initial recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Government-imposed restrictions during the pandemic may have led to this unprecedented demand for sports equipment as consumers world-wide became more health conscious at a time when sports centres were reopened.
The highest increases occurred in water sports (+73%), golf (+54%), articles and equipment (+46%), and racquet sports (+36%). The growth in the articles and equipment category is particularly impressive, as it increased between 2019 and 2020, a period when most other categories saw a decline in imports.
China has long been the most significant exporter of sports goods worldwide. In 1996, it was responsible for 32% of the world's sports goods exports, increasing its share to a peak of 59% in 2010. In 2022, it still accounted for a remarkable 43% of global exports.
In 2022, its exports of racquet sports products were particularly notable, representing 63% of world exports.
The United States has been the largest importer of sports goods since 2010, accounting for 31% of the world's imports in 2022. The European Union, Japan and the United Kingdom are the next largest, with 22% and equal shares of 6%, respectively.
Global imports of sports goods over the past three decades have experienced substantial growth, with an average annual rate of 5%. This trend saw a particularly significant surge of 25% in 2021.
Between 1996 and 2022 'water sports' category saw the highest rise, increasing approximately 4.7 times. “Footwear” and “articles and equipment” imports also surged, growing 4.4 and 4.3 times respectively, said the WTO report.
At the lower end of the spectrum, the “tracksuits”, “balls” and “racquets” categories experienced the least growth, increasing two-fold, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
