Summary
- Largest supplier: China
- 37.6%
- Concentration (HHI)
- 1,751
- Products with a supplier above 50%
- 349
- Products with a supplier above 75%
- 153
Concentration index (HHI): 1,751 out of 10,000; equivalent to splitting purchases among 6 suppliers of the same size
Trend
Trend in shares
China went from 3.6% to 37.6% of what the Democratic Republic of the Congo buys
Share (%)
- China 37.6%
- South Africa 11.8%
- Zambia 10.4%
- India 4.7%
- Uganda 4.2%
Source: CEPII BACI
Show the numbers
| Year | Largest supplier | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | South Africa | 16.9% |
| 1996 | South Africa | 19.9% |
| 1997 | South Africa | 21.6% |
| 1998 | South Africa | 23.1% |
| 1999 | South Africa | 27.1% |
| 2000 | Belgium | 21.9% |
| 2001 | Belgium | 19.8% |
| 2002 | South Africa | 20.4% |
| 2003 | South Africa | 16.9% |
| 2004 | South Africa | 15.2% |
| 2005 | South Africa | 16.7% |
| 2006 | Zimbabwe | 31.7% |
| 2007 | South Africa | 21.7% |
| 2008 | South Africa | 28.8% |
| 2009 | South Africa | 18.1% |
| 2010 | South Africa | 20.3% |
| 2011 | South Africa | 20% |
| 2012 | South Africa | 25.1% |
| 2013 | South Africa | 19.9% |
| 2014 | China | 20.7% |
| 2015 | China | 16.7% |
| 2016 | China | 16% |
| 2017 | United States | 21.2% |
| 2018 | United States | 23% |
| 2019 | China | 22.2% |
| 2020 | China | 23.1% |
| 2021 | China | 22.6% |
| 2022 | China | 27.7% |
| 2023 | China | 26.1% |
| 2024 | China | 37.6% |
Its suppliers
Some of these goods may have been produced in another country: countries record origin in different ways.
Products with a dominant supplier
Of the 519 products the Democratic Republic of the Congo buys for more than $1 million in 2024, these are the highest-value ones with a dominant supplier.
| Product | Supplier | Share | Second | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trucks | China | 58.6% | Zambia · 9.4% | $411 million |
| Sorting and crushing machines | China | 75.1%over 75% | South Africa · 17.8% | $236 million |
| Bulldozers and excavators | China | 62.9% | Uganda · 16.2% | $226 million |
| Soft drinks | Zambia | 65.8% | Tanzania · 19.8% | $198 million |
| Liquid pumps | China | 50.2% | South Africa · 36.7% | $179 million |
| Cereal groats and pellets | South Africa | 65% | United States · 32.5% | $168 million |
| Cameras and broadcast equipment | China | 75.4%over 75% | Hong Kong · 12.3% | $139 million |
| Detergents and surfactants | Zambia | 50.4% | China · 13.6% | $138 million |
| Cars | Japan | 52% | Belgium · 8.8% | $137 million |
| Cables and wire | China | 65.3% | South Africa · 13.8% | $128 million |
| Sulfur | Zambia | 87.1%over 75% | South Africa · 6.8% | $128 million |
| Steel structures | China | 56.7% | South Africa · 17.5% | $128 million |
| Generating sets | China | 85.6%over 75% | Italy · 5.3% | $126 million |
| Centrifuges and filters | China | 68.9% | South Africa · 14.2% | $122 million |
| New tires | China | 65.6% | South Africa · 19.9% | $119 million |
| Wigs | China | 88.7%over 75% | Kenya · 6.4% | $119 million |
| Cement | Zambia | 54.1% | Uganda · 35.5% | $115 million |
| Control panels | China | 58.9% | South Africa · 26.1% | $114 million |
| Transformers and power supplies | China | 67.4% | South Africa · 11.3% | $111 million |
| Rice | Thailand | 56.1% | China · 25.2% | $109 million |
| Bread, biscuits and pastries | Zambia | 63.3% | Uganda · 9.3% | $100 million |
| Auto parts | China | 52.6% | South Africa · 21.1% | $97 million |
| Tractors | China | 72.1% | Belgium · 4.1% | $94 million |
| Furniture | China | 72% | South Africa · 6.2% | $89 million |
| Other iron or steel articles | China | 63.2% | Zambia · 14.1% | $76 million |
and 324 more
A product has a dominant supplier when a single country sells more than 50% of what is bought of it; we flag it separately above 75%.
Selling: who it relies on
- Largest customer: China
- 73%
- Concentration (HHI)
- 5,373
Concentration index (HHI): 5,373 out of 10,000; equivalent to splitting sales among 2 customers of the same size
Trend in shares
China went from 0.1% to 73% of what the Democratic Republic of the Congo sells
Share (%)
- China 73%
- South Korea 3.3%
- India 2.9%
- Saudi Arabia 2.9%
- Spain 2.5%
Source: CEPII BACI
Show the numbers
| Year | Largest customer | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Belgium | 45.9% |
| 1996 | Belgium | 43.9% |
| 1997 | Belgium | 45.1% |
| 1998 | Belgium | 59.3% |
| 1999 | Belgium | 66.2% |
| 2000 | Belgium | 61.4% |
| 2001 | Belgium | 68.8% |
| 2002 | Belgium | 68.3% |
| 2003 | Belgium | 61.9% |
| 2004 | Belgium | 45.5% |
| 2005 | Belgium | 38.9% |
| 2006 | Belgium | 33.4% |
| 2007 | Belgium | 23% |
| 2008 | China | 42.6% |
| 2009 | China | 41.3% |
| 2010 | China | 45.5% |
| 2011 | China | 45.2% |
| 2012 | China | 49.7% |
| 2013 | China | 36.3% |
| 2014 | China | 33.7% |
| 2015 | China | 28.7% |
| 2016 | China | 31.4% |
| 2017 | China | 29.7% |
| 2018 | China | 41.6% |
| 2019 | China | 38.1% |
| 2020 | China | 48% |
| 2021 | China | 52.6% |
| 2022 | China | 53.3% |
| 2023 | China | 51.2% |
| 2024 | China | 73% |
43 of the 50 products the Democratic Republic of the Congo sells for more than $1 million have a customer buying more than 50% of what the Democratic Republic of the Congo sells of that product; in 31, more than 75%. In those products, sales to each one’s dominant customer add up to 75.7% of what the Democratic Republic of the Congo sells.
| Product | Customer | Share | Second | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refined copper | China | 71.8% | South Korea · 4.8% | $19.5 billion |
| Cobalt | China | 99%over 75% | South Korea · 0.88% | $3.1 billion |
| Copper ore | China | 83.3%over 75% | Serbia · 7.4% | $3 billion |
| Unrefined copper | China | 100%over 75% | South Korea · 0.02% | $1.1 billion |
| Tin ore | China | 99.9%over 75% | Malaysia · 0.14% | $602 million |
| Crude petroleum | India | 52.3% | China · 25.7% | $599 million |
| Diamonds | Belgium | 60.7% | India · 38.7% | $523 million |
| Cobalt oxides | Namibia | 64% | Zambia · 30.2% | $222 million |
| Zinc ore | Zambia | 76.2%over 75% | Namibia · 22.9% | $128 million |
| Logs | China | 85.4%over 75% | Taiwan · 3.3% | $63 million |
| Niobium, tantalum, vanadium and zirconium ore | China | 91.6%over 75% | Kazakhstan · 7.7% | $60 million |
| Cobalt ore | Morocco | 56.4% | Taiwan · 41.4% | $33 million |
| Refined petroleum | Singapore | 77.5%over 75% | Mauritius · 10.3% | $17 million |
| Copper master alloys | China | 100%over 75% | — | $14 million |
| Electricity | Zimbabwe | 100%over 75% | — | $12 million |
and 28 more
Concentration compared
The closest countries in the concentration ranking (HHI, highest first).
| Rank | Country | HHI |
|---|---|---|
| 69 | Somalia | 1,758 |
| 70 | Tonga | 1,755 |
| 71 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 1,751 |
| 72 | Vanuatu | 1,730 |
| 73 | Bangladesh | 1,728 |
| 74 | Paraguay | 1,724 |
Links
- Trade profile of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Trade between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and China
- Trade between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and India
- Trade between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Africa
- Trade between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia
- Dependence of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on China
- Dependence of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on Zambia
- All countries
Sources and method
Sources and licenses
- CEPII BACI · Licence Ouverte Etalab 2.0
- Natural Earth · Public domain
Methodology
The data come from CEPII BACI (Etalab 2.0 licence), which reconciles what the exporting and the importing country report, in current USD, FOB. Data up to 2024.
Dependence is the share of a country’s imports (or exports) that each partner accounts for. It does not measure whether a product has a substitute or how much it would cost to change supplier.
The concentration index (HHI) adds up the square of each partner’s share, in percent: it runs from 0 to 10,000. Its equivalent is 10,000 ÷ HHI, the number of partners of the same size that would give that value.
Products are HS4 headings of the 1992 nomenclature (some combine different goods), with a floor of $1 million per product and country.
The EU is the 27 current members in every year; the United Kingdom is outside the EU throughout the series.
Re-exports: countries that act as redistribution hubs carry their notice and the figures are not corrected.