Imports are goods and services received from another country. They can give consumers more choices and give businesses access to supplies and services, while also increasing competitive pressure on some domestic producers. Their effect depends on what is imported, how it is used, and how the wider economy adjusts.
What counts as an import?
An import is a good or service received from a foreign economy. Goods include products such as cars, oil, and medicines. Services can include financial, travel, and transport services. A smartphone is a good, for example, while an associated data allowance, insurance policy, or financing arrangement may be a service, as the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) explains in its definitions of international economic statistics.
Customs arrivals and national accounts measure different things
Import statistics do not all use the same definition. For national accounts, the World Bank defines an imported good by a change in economic ownership from a non-resident to a resident, whether or not the good physically crosses a border. Imported services are services supplied by non-residents to residents. See the World Bank metadata for imports of goods and services.
By contrast, the U.S. Census Bureau’s customs-oriented definition concerns goods physically brought into the United States. It includes certain U.S.-origin goods returned without substantial transformation. Customs statistics and national accounts therefore answer different questions; a figure based on one should not automatically be treated as if it were measured by the other. The Census Bureau glossary describes its terminology.
#1 Best Overall
How imports can affect consumers and businesses
More choice and access to goods
Imports can expand the range of products available to buyers and provide access to goods that are unavailable or more costly to produce domestically. Historical UK figures illustrate one possible price channel: the UK Department for International Trade Analytical Group reported real import-price declines from 1996 to 2006 of 27% for textiles, 38% for clothing, and around 50% for consumer electronics. These are historical UK-linked figures published in 2018, not current prices or a general estimate for other countries or periods. The figures appear in the department’s analysis of the economic benefits of international trade.
Inputs and services for production
Businesses may import materials, components, equipment, or services used to make and deliver their own products. A wider choice of suppliers can help firms obtain inputs they need and may support production. The UK government analysis describes possible productivity channels that include competition, technology diffusion, investment, and economies of scale. These are potential effects, not guaranteed outcomes for every business or industry; the publication also notes that evidence on foreign direct investment benefits is more mixed and depends on circumstances.
Rank #2
Why imports can also create pressure at home
Imported products can compete with goods made by domestic producers. Buyers and businesses that use imported inputs may benefit, while some local producers may face pressure to lower costs, change what they make, or compete on other attributes. The effects on particular industries and jobs depend on the products involved, the period, how workers and businesses adjust, and the policy context. There is no single employment result that applies to all imports.
That is why the effects are unevenly distributed: a lower-cost input may help one firm expand, while a domestic producer making a competing product faces a tougher market. The overall outcome cannot be judged from import totals alone.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
Rank #3
- Used Book in Good Condition
Why imports are subtracted in GDP
In the expenditure approach to gross domestic product (GDP), imports are subtracted from spending because consumption, investment, and government purchases can include foreign-produced goods and services. Subtracting imports removes that foreign production from the measure of domestic output. It is an accounting adjustment—not a statement that importing automatically destroys domestic production or reduces GDP by the value of the imports.
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) illustrates the point with a $500 import increase that goes into inventories: the inventory increase offsets the import subtraction, leaving topline GDP unchanged. In another example, the BEA shows GDP declining by $150 when government research-and-development spending falls, even as imports rise by $500. The import change by itself does not determine the GDP result. The examples and explanation are in the BEA’s GDP FAQ.
Rank #4
Imports, exports, and the trade balance
The trade balance compares exports with imports of goods and services. When exports exceed imports, the balance is a surplus; when imports exceed exports, it is a deficit. As the ONS puts it, “The balance between the exports and imports of goods and services is known as the ‘balance of trade’.” Its international statistics explainer distinguishes this measure from the current account.
The current account is broader: it includes the trade balance as well as primary income and secondary transfers. A trade deficit is an accounting relationship, not, on its own, a complete verdict on an economy’s health or people’s welfare. Its significance depends on the wider economic context.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteQuick Recap
Best Value
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
