BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – The EU exported US$1.1 billion (€1.1 billion) worth of bicycles in 2022 (both electric and non-electric, a rise of 22 percent compared with 2021), according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union on the World Bicycle Day.
The imports were double the exports, with US$2.6 billion (€2.5 billion) worth of bicycles (+32 percent).
The overall increase in the trade of bicycles can be attributed to an increase in the export and import of electric bicycles, which are typically more expensive.
A further look into the 2022 data shows that the EU exported 365,000 electric bicycles (+16 percent compared with 2021) and imported 1.2 million electric bicycles (+16 percent).
The EU exported 1 million non-electric bicycles (-31 percent compared with 2021) and imported 5.2 million (-9 percent).
In 2022, Switzerland was the main destination for EU exports of non-electric bicycles (25 percent of the extra-EU total, measured in value), followed by the United Kingdom (23 percent), and the United States (7 percent).
For exports of electric bicycles, Switzerland and the UK were also the main destinations (38 percent and 27 percent of total extra-EU electric bicycle exports, respectively), followed by the United States (13 percent) and Norway (9 percent).
In 2022, EU imports of non-electric bicycles came mainly from Cambodia (30 percent of total extra-EU bicycle imports), Taiwan (23 percent), China (11 percent), Bangladesh (10 percent) and Turkey (6 percent).
Imports of electric bicycles into the EU came primarily from Taiwan (56 percent of total extra-EU electric bicycle imports), followed by Vietnam (14 percent), Switzerland (13 percent), China (8 percent) and Turkey (5 percent).
World Bicycle Day draws attention to the benefits of using the bicycle — a simple, affordable, clean and environmentally fit sustainable means of transportation.