Does the EU import more services than goods from the USA?
Executive summary
Yes — based on the most recent official tallies, the EU imported a larger value of services from the United States than it imported in goods: services imports from the U.S. are reported at roughly €427 billion, compared with goods imports of about €333–347 billion in 2024, meaning services inflows exceeded goods inflows [1] [2] [3].
1. The headline numbers: services top goods in EU imports from the U.S.
European Commission trade data show that the EU bought about €427 billion of services from the United States while importing roughly €347 billion of goods from the U.S. in 2023 (the Commission report gives those service and goods splits explicitly) — a gap that indicates a sizable services-heavy import profile from the U.S. into the EU [1]. Eurostat’s 2024 goods breakdown records EU imports from the United States at €333.4 billion for 2024, and United Nations COMTRADE–compiled series cited by TradingEconomics place EU imports from the United States around US$355.76 billion in 2024, which is consistent with a goods-imports figure materially below the reported services-imports value [2] [3].
2. How official sources frame the balance: surplus on goods, deficit on services
Across official EU and EU–U.S. reporting the story is symmetrical: the EU runs a goods surplus against the U.S. but a services deficit — meaning the EU exports more goods to the U.S. than it imports, yet imports more services from the U.S. than it exports in services [4] [1]. The Consilium summary for 2024 frames total EU–U.S. trade in goods at roughly €867 billion and services near €817 billion, and explicitly reports the EU held a goods surplus and a services deficit — the same data architecture that produces the conclusion that services imports from the U.S. exceed goods imports [4].
3. Why services dominate this bilateral direction: composition and measurement
The tilt toward services reflects the composition of transatlantic trade: the EU imports high‑value services from the U.S. — from finance, intellectual property, and tech-related services to digital and professional services — categories that command large invoice values and cross-border billing arrangements [1] [4]. Measurement conventions also matter: services trade is captured differently across datasets and can include large cross-border charges (licensing, royalties, digital services) that outsize visible goods flows like manufactured items or energy in particular years [4] [1].
4. Data caveats and why different series give different totals
The evidence rests on complementary but not identical data sources; Eurostat and EU Commission reporting use Euro-denominated series and EU statistical conventions, COMTRADE/TradingEconomics report U.S. dollar values and may apply different partner attribution rules, and U.S. agencies report mirrored figures that reflect their own measurement choices — these differences explain why goods imports are reported as €333.4 billion (Eurostat, 2024) versus roughly US$355–356 billion in COMTRADE compilations for 2024 [2] [3]. Analysts should also note timing (calendar year reported), intra‑EU processing of goods, and the special accounting of some services (like cross-border digital transactions) as reasons figures will not be identical across sources [5] [4].
5. Political framing and who benefits from emphasizing one side or the other
Both EU and U.S. actors selectively foreground parts of the data to make policy points: the EU highlights its goods surplus to argue strength in manufacturing and strategic autonomy, while U.S. announcements often underscore services competitiveness or bilateral investment ties; trade ministries and think‑tanks may therefore amplify whichever headline best suits regulatory or tariff narratives [1] [6]. Readers should be alert that a near‑parity in total trade can be spun as imbalance depending on whether goods or services are emphasized, and that press releases from either side can implicitly carry policy agendas [4] [6].
6. Bottom line
Multiple official EU datasets and EU–U.S. trade summaries converge on the same conclusion: in recent reporting (chiefly 2023–2024), the EU imported more services from the United States than it imported goods from the United States, with services imports around €427 billion versus goods imports in the €333–347 billion range [1] [2] [3].