53.5% of EU services exports by large enterprises

Disclaimer: the total value of exported services in the first paragraph was corrected after publication.

In 2023, the EU exported services to countries outside the EU worth €1 440 billion. The majority (53.5%) of these exports were carried out by large enterprises with 250 or more employees. Small enterprises (up to 49 employees) accounted for 14.2% of exports and medium-sized enterprises (50 to 249 employees) for 10.0%. The remaining 22.3% of exported services came from enterprises of unknown size.

In 10 EU countries, large enterprises accounted for more than 50% of all services exported outside the EU, with the largest contributions recorded in Germany (72.8%), Finland (66.7%) and Denmark (66.0%).

Source dataset: ext_stec01

Small enterprises made more than half of the service exports in Malta (68.4%) and Estonia (59.6%).

This information comes from data on services trade by enterprise characteristics (STEC). This article presents a handful of findings from a more detailed Statistics Explained article on services trade by enterprise characteristics - STEC.

Foreign-controlled enterprises take lead in EU services exports 

In 2023, foreign-controlled enterprises played a key role in EU service exports. An enterprise is considered foreign-controlled if it is controlled by an institutional unit outside its country of residence— either a  EU country or a non-EU country.

Foreign-controlled enterprises held the largest share of exports in 9 EU countries. The share was the highest in Luxembourg (88.6%), Ireland (79.1%) and the Netherlands (63.7%).

Enterprises under domestic control accounted for most of the services exports in Denmark (70.0%), Finland (62.3%), Malta (59.8%) and France (59.3%). 

Source dataset: ext_stec03