Evolution of trade under the WTO: handy statistics

Trade Growth⁽¹⁾

• World trade volume today is roughly 45 times the level recorded in the early days of the GATT (4500% growth from 1950 to 2025).
• World trade values today have ballooned by almost 410 times from 1950 levels.
• Volume and value graphs below show trade picking up steeply since the establishment of the WTO in 1995.
• As of 2025, world trade volume and value have expanded 4% and 6% respectively on average since 1995, when the WTO was first established.

Footnotes

1. Trade is calculated as average of exports and imports, and excludes significant re-exports or imports for re-exports Back to text