Today’s graphic, using data from Journal of Commerce, highlights the companies behind the United States’ import-export numbers.
In Western countries, people often assume that their top export by volume is a high-value manufactured good or, at very least, a natural resource like timber or oil. The truth is, a sizeable portion of exports from Western countries are waste materials. Here are the top 10 companies by export volume (20-foot equivalent units, or TEUs):
It will come as no surprise that Walmart (NYSE:WMT), the world’s biggest retailer by some margin, is also America’s top importer. In a single year, Walmart’s incoming goods would equate to nearly 50 of the industry’s largest fully-loaded cargo ships.
The above excerpts from the original article by Nick Routley have been edited for the sake of clarity and brevity. The author’s views and conclusions are unaltered and no personal comments have been included to maintain the integrity of the original article.