Official Statistics

UK trade in numbers: sources

Updated 18 October 2024

Introduction

UK trade in numbers uses data derived from a number of different publicly available official sources. It aims to bring together and summarise the wide range of trade and investment statistics produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Department for Business and Trade (DBT), and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), to provide an up to date picture of UK trade and investment.

Reporting methodology

There are a variety of sources on trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) statistics. Estimates may differ between sources due to data revisions and differences in coverage, currency and methodology. This means that in some instances, figures for the same metric (for example, total UK exports) may differ between sources.

The figures used in the UK trade in numbers publication are the latest available data at the time of publication. To be able to provide this information, a variety of sources have been used. This publication includes estimates from the latest quarterly ONS balance of payments and monthly ONS UK trade releases, as well as quarterly bilateral trade estimates, to provide the latest data available.

There are often discrepancies in the data published by the UK and international organisations such as UNCTAD. These are mainly due to exchange rate conversions, delays in processing revisions and data adjustments applied by international compilers.

All figures are subject to future revisions and therefore the figures presented in the publication are an accurate snapshot at the time of publication. We encourage readers to always use the latest sources available (see data sources).

With regards to the data used in the UK trade in numbers, readers should note:

• unless otherwise stated, all data are nominal (current prices), not adjusted for inflation - estimates in real terms (constant prices) take account of inflation and are not used in the publication
• all data are in the public domain
• all figures are rounded, and therefore some percentages may not add up to the totals due to rounding
• missing values are excluded from all calculations of percentages - underlying percentage figures are rounded to one decimal place or to the nearest whole integer (all trailing decimals are removed)
• please see footnotes for each statistic, chart and table presented; this includes important information about each data source
• foreign direct investment data from the ONS and UNCTAD are measured on a net basis (investments minus disinvestments)

Disclaimer

Figures used throughout the UK trade in numbers are based on previously published official and national statistics. As such all figures are accurate based on the data made available, and all liability for the accuracy of these statistics is with the data owners.

The UK trade in numbers publication will update and revise figures as and when data owners release new/revised data. DBT takes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the data sources used.

Data sources

Some of the sources used are updated monthly, some quarterly and some annually. Some figures may become out of date a few days before the next UK trade in numbers publication (see next update). Users can always obtain the latest data from the source listed on each page.

Statistic	Monthly	Quarterly	Annual
UK total trade	Sum of exports + imports from ‘ONS UK trade’	N/A	N/A
Total imports/exports	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A	N/A
Total goods/services	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A	N/A
Total trade with EU/non-EU	N/A	‘ONS balance of payments’	N/A
Top 10 UK goods exports	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A	N/A
Top 5 UK services exports	N/A	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A
Top 10 UK goods imports	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A	N/A
Top 5 UK services imports	N/A	‘ONS UK trade’	N/A
Top 20 UK export markets	N/A	‘ONS UK total trade: all countries’	N/A
Top 20 UK import markets	N/A	‘ONS UK total trade: all countries’	N/A
UK exports by UK nations and English regions	N/A	N/A	‘ONS International trade in UK nations, regions and cities’
Top 10 investors in the UK	N/A	N/A	‘ONS foreign direct investment involving UK companies’
Top 10 UK investment destinations	N/A	N/A	‘ONS foreign direct investment involving UK companies’

The data used in the UK trade in numbers come from a range of official statistics.

An official statistic is produced by Crown bodies and other organisations listed within an Official Statistics Order, on behalf of the UK government or devolved administrations.

Official statistics provide a factual basis for assessment and decisions on economic, social and environmental issues at all levels of society

The UK Statistics Authority explain the term ‘official statistics’ which includes 3 types of statistics produced by public bodies:

• Accredited official statistics (called ‘National Statistics’ in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007) are official statistics that the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) has independently reviewed and confirmed comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. For a complete list of all accredited official statistics, see the List of Accredited Official Statistics maintained by OSR. 
• Official statistics in development are official statistics that are undergoing a development; they may be new or existing statistics, and will be tested with users, in line with the standards of trustworthiness, quality, and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. They were formerly known as ‘experimental statistics’.
• Statistics that have not been assessed as fully compliant with the code of practice - OSR accreditation may be cancelled or suspended in cases of serious non-compliance – see the List of Cancelled or Suspended Accreditations (previously called the Register of De-designations).

The following table summarises the types of official statistics used in the UK trade in numbers publication:

Data source	Type of official statistics
ONS UK trade	De-designated accredited official statistics
ONS UK balance of payments	Accredited official statistics
ONS UK total trade: all countries	Official statistics
ONS foreign direct investment involving UK companies	Accredited official statistics
ONS, Annual Business Survey: exporters and importers	Official statistics in development
UNCTAD	International database derived from official statistics
DBT inward investment results	Official statistics
ONS international trade in UK nations, regions and cities	Official statistics in development

Next update

The UK trade in numbers will be updated monthly. The update schedule is determined by the release of other data sources, please see the statistics release calendar for details of the next UK trade in numbers publication.