Source: WTO.

Merchandise Exports per Continent, 1948-2007

Europe accounts for the largest share of international trade relations in the world, about 45% of the value of global exports. The importance of this relation is related to the level of economic development of European nations, political integration (the European Union), the small distances involved, and economies of scale. Variations in the geographical units of reference do not facilitate international comparisons, especially with North America. For example, while the United States is comparable in size to the European continent its internal trade does not count for international trade even though the implied trading distances are often superior to those within Western Europe. Thus, what counts as "international trade" in Europe is regional trade in North America.

Asian countries, including Japan, experienced an important growth of their share of global exports, particularly since the 1990s. They accounted for 29% of the value of global exports in 2007, whereas this share was only 14% in 1973. This change is the outcome of the growth of Asian economies (Japan, NIEs, China, Southeast Asia), particularly leaning on export-oriented strategies. The Middle East has seen a relative decline in exports, a process linked to the declining price of petroleum during the 1990s, but as the 21st century began surging energy prices accounted for a slight growth of the Middle East share. Europe experienced little changes in its share of exports in recent decades while the share of North America declined. This is the result of lower comparative growth levels, implying faster industrialization in developing countries. Besides, the increasing share of developing countries in global exports is almost entirely attributable to Asian countries.

Latin America and especially Africa experienced a rather weak performance in recent decades. When international trade more concerned commodities (in the 1950s and 1960s), the share of Africa and South America was substantially higher. However, since then Africa has been plagued with endemic political and development problems, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. The share of Latin America has been edging up in recent years, mainly attributable to the resource trade.