Market evolution: Electrical machinery and equipment (CN 85) — 2015–2025

Introduction

CN 85 groups a broad set of electrical goods, from electric motors and transformers to smartphones, semiconductors, batteries and domestic appliances. This report examines the European Union’s extra‑EU trade in these products from 2015 to 2025, using annual data. It identifies the principal trends—a deepening trade deficit, shifting supplier geography, product‑segment upheavals and internal specialisation—and relies exclusively on figures from the EU Trade Dashboard.

1. A Widening Trade Deficit Driven by Surging Import Volumes and Diverging Prices

EU exports rise in value but shrink in volume, lifting unit prices sharply

EU extra‑EU exports of electrical machinery grew from €165.6 billion in 2015 to €234.6 billion in 2025, a +41.6 % increase. Over the same period, however, the shipped volume fell from 7,091 thousand tonnes to 6,376 thousand tonnes (−10.1 %). This pushed the average export unit price up by 57.5 %, from €23,359/t to €36,797/t.

Imports almost double in quantity while prices fall moderately

Imports surged from €200.0 billion to €349.2 billion (+74.6 %). This was entirely a volume story: imported quantity jumped by 93.3 %, from 8,392 thousand tonnes to 16,223 thousand tonnes, while the average import price actually fell by 9.7 % (from €23,825/t to €21,526/t). Cheaper, high‑volume foreign goods poured into the EU.

Source: EU‑level trade flows.

The deficit deepens to record levels

The widening gap between import and export values drove the deficit from –€34.3 billion in 2015 to –€114.6 billion in 2025, a deterioration of 234 %. The worst point was 2022, when the deficit hit –€152.4 billion, reflecting the post‑pandemic demand surge and energy‑crisis price effects.

2. Reconfiguration of Key Trading Partners and Geopolitical Shocks

China remains the dominant supplier, but Vietnam and India gain share rapidly

China’s role as the EU’s top extra‑EU source for electrical machinery is undisputed, with imports rising from €86.2 billion to €165.5 billion (+91.9 %). Nevertheless, the most dynamic growth occurred elsewhere: imports from Viet Nam jumped 162.5 % (to €23.9 billion) and those from India soared 598.5 % (to €10.1 billion), signalling a diversification of supply. Imports from the United Kingdom fell by 45.3 % (to €8.4 billion) after Brexit disrupted integrated value chains.

Source: Top extra‑EU partners.

Exports pivot to the United States as Russia’s market collapses

On the export side, the United States became the EU’s largest outlet, with shipments rising 88.9 % to €40.9 billion. Sales to China also grew healthily (+71.4 %, to €29.0 billion). The United Kingdom market slipped slightly (–9.4 %), while exports to Russia collapsed by 94.9 % after sanctions, from €6.7 billion to just €0.3 billion.

Source: same as above.

Concentrated disruptions: price shocks in key bilateral relations

The decade was punctuated by extreme price events. The United States recorded a 285.6 % price surge in EU imports in 2022, the largest abnormality detected. EU export prices to Norway spiked by 97.4 % in the same year, while import prices from Viet Nam and Türkiye saw durable, though smaller, upward shifts. These shocks underline the fragility of supply lines in high‑tech electrical goods.

Data on price shocks from volatility & shocks analysis.

3. Internal Specialisation and Volatile Product Segments

Central and Eastern Europe lead in revealed comparative advantage

In 2025, the highest specialisation in electrical machinery exports (measured by revealed symmetric comparative advantage, RSCA) was found in Malta (0.49), Hungary (0.42), Romania (0.31) and Czechia (0.28). These member states act as key assembly and manufacturing centres for automotive and electronics supply chains. In contrast, Belgium (–0.47), Ireland (–0.40) and Spain (–0.30) were the least specialised, while large economies like Germany (0.00) displayed no strong sectoral bias.

Source: Specialisation of EU countries.

Semiconductors: a volume explosion with collapsing unit prices

Semiconductor devices (HS 8541) dominate extra‑EU imports. While the imported quantity ballooned from 396 kt to 4,504 kt (+1038 %), the value only rose from €7.98 bn to €14.70 bn (+84 %) because the average unit price plunged from €20,151/t to €3,265/t (–83.8 %). A global glut in certain chips and the shift to lower‑cost Asian production explain this dramatic price decline.

Source: Product segment comparison.

Batteries become a strategic battleground

Electric accumulators (HS 8507) witnessed a nearly eight‑fold increase in extra‑EU import value, from €4.06 bn to €31.81 bn (+682 %). EU battery exports rose as well, to €8.26 bn (+228 %), but the trade deficit in this segment widened enormously. Import unit prices surged from €6,914/t in 2015 to a peak of €19,895/t in 2023, before easing to €13,712/t in 2025, reflecting the tension between rising demand for e‑mobility and industrial scale‑up.

Source: same as above.

Conclusion

Over the 2015–2025 period, EU extra‑EU trade in electrical machinery underwent a profound restructuring. Export values grew through quality upgrading, but volumes contracted, while imports boomed in volume at falling unit prices, creating a historically large trade deficit. The supply chain pivoted further toward Asia, with China holding its lead and Vietnam and India emerging as major second‑tier suppliers. Geopolitics reshaped export markets: the United States became the top destination, compensating for the collapse of Russian demand and the post‑Brexit stagnation of the UK market. Inside the EU, Central European states deepened their specialisation, while semiconductors and batteries emerged as the most volatile and strategically critical product segments. These dynamics underscore the EU’s growing import dependency in key electrical goods and the need for robust industrial and trade policies.