Ranked: America’s Most Important Export Partners, by U.S. Jobs Supported

Ranked: America’s Top Trade Partners Supporting U.S. Jobs

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This chart tracks the number of U.S. jobs supported by American exports to its top 10 export partners.

Job estimates are made for the year 2022 by the The US-China Business Council in a report published 2024.

To match that, U.S. export data is also for the year 2022. Two sources have been used: the Office of the United States Trade Representative and the Observatory of Economic Complexity. All export data is inclusive of services, except for Germany and Ireland.

All the U.S. Jobs Supported by American Exports

Exports to Canada, Mexico, and China—America’s top three trade partners—supported more than four million jobs in 2022.

Interestingly these jobs cover different sectors of top U.S. exports. Namely, automotive for Canada, energy for Mexico, and agriculture for China.

As a result, retaliatory tariffs from these three countries could affect different parts of the U.S. economy.

For context, President-elect Donald Trump has threatened a 25% tariff on imports coming in from Canada and Mexico and a further 10% on China (after those already imposed).

Ongoing talks between the North American leaders might result in a reduction or removal of that rate, especially if national security concerns are addressed.

Trump Focusing on Trade Imbalances

Finally, these top three are not the only countries earmarked for trade disruption. Tariffs may be coming for the EU as well. This is driven by the President-elect’s belief that there’s a tariff imbalance between the two economic blocs.

For context, while the average tariff rate is somewhat similar (3.3% for the U.S. in 2023 vs 5.0% for the EU), some goods (passenger vehicles and agriculture products) see more of a discrepancy.

The U.S. trade deficit with the EU—set to hit a record $230 billion in 2024—is also a data point frequently brought up during these tariff talks. But most economists argue it’s a result of macroeconomic factors rather than trade patterns.

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Wondering about the other supply chain fight brewing between the U.S. and China? Check out: China’s Rare Earth Minerals Export Ban for a full breakdown.