International trade is a vital part of the United States economy. American companies exported $2.5 trillion worth of goods and services in 2021. Exports support jobs for U.S. workers and let companies sell their products globally.
In this blog post, we’ll highlight the top 10 export companies in the USA. We’ll look at what they export, where they rank for exports, and other key details.
You’ll learn:
- The largest export companies in the U.S.
- What products and services they export
- Where they rank among exporters
Let’s count down the leading American exporters!
#10 Caterpillar
Caterpillar is number ten among U.S. export companies. The construction equipment giant ships products worldwide. Here are the main details:
Total Exports: $11 billion
Products Exported: Construction equipment, engines, turbines
Supply Chain Exports: $8.1 million
Caterpillar exports its iconic yellow bulldozers, cranes, mining trucks and more to customers globally. Engines, turbines and industrial generator sets are also top exports.
Fun fact: Over half of Caterpillar’s sales come from outside the United States.
#9 Chevron
The California-based oil & gas supermajor comes in as the 9th biggest U.S. exporter. Key facts:
Total Exports: $15 billion
Products Exported: Mineral fuels, oil, gas
Supply Chain Exports: $1.5 billion
Chevron has operations spanning the globe from the Gulf of Mexico to offshore Western Australia. The energy supplies it discovers and produces are exported to countries worldwide.
Chevron also exports a few billion dollars worth of drilling, production and transportation equipment to its international operations.
#8 Ford Motor
Iconic automaker Ford ships vehicles and parts overseas from its Michigan headquarters. Details:
Total Exports: $18 billion
Products Exported: Vehicles, parts
Supply Chain Exports: $15 billion
The Ford F-Series pickup truck is America’s bestselling vehicle for over four decades. Ford sells many F-150s, Explorer SUVs and other models in Canada, China and Europe.
Auto parts like engines, lighting and electronics are major exports too. Ford operates six vehicle assembly plants in Canada and Mexico plus two factories in Europe.
#7 Intel
Intel revolutionized computing with its silicon microprocessors and chips. Export stats:
Total Exports: $23 billion
Products Exported: Microprocessors, semiconductors, computers
Supply Chain Exports: $17 billion
Intel supplies the processors that power PCs and laptops made across the world. Cloud data centers that enable Internet services rely on Intel’s server chips too.
Intel, along with Taiwan’s TSMC, leads in exporting the semiconductors vital to global electronics supply chains. The company has large manufacturing sites in Ireland, Israel and China.
#6 General Electric
GE is a multinational conglomerate operating in aviation, healthcare equipment, renewable energy and financial services. Stats:
Total Exports: $26 billion
Products Exported: Aircraft engines, generators, medical imaging scanners, industrial equipment
Supply Chain Exports: $24 billion
GE’s diverse set of industrial products power factories, buildings and transportation systems globally. It also serves the overseas healthcare market with advanced medical equipment and financial services.
Bonus: GE is developing France’s largest offshore wind farm, located near the Normandy coastline.
#5 Boeing
Boeing airliners fly passengers and cargo shipments worldwide. Let’s look at the famous aircraft maker’s export profile:
Total Exports: $65 billion
Products Exported: Commercial airplanes, aircraft parts
Supply Chain Exports: $58 billion
Boeing delivered over 400 airplanes abroad last year to China, Canada, Germany and other countries. While recent crashes and 737 Max issues have challenged the brand, it remains America’s largest aerospace exporter.
About 80% of Boeing’s commercial aircraft production goes to foreign customers across some 150 countries. From single-aisle 737s to long-range 777s, Boeing dominates long-haul aircraft exports.
#4 Amgen
Biopharmaceutical company Amgen develops vital human therapeutics exported internationally. Its export numbers:
Total Exports: $81 billion
Products Exported: Medicines, pharmaceuticals
Supply Chain Exports: $78 billion
Amgen’s top exports include:
- Enbrel – Anti-inflammatory used mainly for rheumatoid arthritis treatment
- Prolia & Xgeva – Osteoporosis therapies
- Sensipar/Mimpara – Kidney disease drug
Amgen medicines address illnesses with high unmet needs. Its robust pipeline also shows great promise in battling migraines, cholesterol and cancers globally.
Over 100 countries benefit from Amgen’s therapies. The company operates major R&D and production facilities in the U.K., Ireland and Puerto Rico.
#3 Apple
Apple is the third biggest U.S. exporter. Stats on the consumer tech giant:
Total Exports: $85 billion
Products Exported: iPhones, iPads, Macbooks, Apple Watches
Supply Chain Exports: $79 billion
iPhones alone account for $63 billion of Apple’s exports. Its ubiquitous smartphones, tablets and laptops define modern mobile computing for countless global users.
While designed in California, Apple’s contract manufacturers like Foxconn assemble most devices abroad in China. Still, Apple ranks highly as an American export services provider via app sales, licensing, royalties and retail imports it later resells to foreign markets.
#2 Microsoft
Software drives Microsoft’s huge export revenues:
Total Exports: $125 billion
Products Exported: Software, cloud services
Supply Chain Exports: $122 billion
Microsoft Windows runs over 75% of the world’s desktop PCs and laptops. Throw in ubiquitous Microsoft Office apps like Word, Excel and PowerPoint used by over 1 billion people globally.
But Microsoft’s largest growth area now is cloud infrastructure platform Azure. Its global cloud data center footprint lets organizations big and small utilize cloud computing services anywhere.
#1 DowDuPont
When two massive chemical companies merged, they created a new #1 U.S. exporter:
Total Exports: $180 billion
Products Exported: Chemicals, plastics, synthetic rubber, polymers
Supply Chain Exports: $175 billion
DowDuPont leads American exports thanks to:
- Agrochemicals like insecticides, herbicides and fungicides
- Construction chemicals
- Various plastic resins
These materials get manufactured into consumer and industrial products at overseas factories. The company operates sites across the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific regions.
DowDuPont materials ultimately end up in packaging, appliances, electronics, automotive parts and solutions for health, infrastructure innovations globally.
Summary
We’ve seen the top export companies headquartered in America span:
- Heavy equipment & engines
- Oil, gas & fuels
- Automotive
- Microprocessors & semiconductors
- Aircraft
- Biopharmaceutical therapies
- Software & cloud platforms
- Chemicals & plastics
Through quality manufactured goods, innovative technologies and essential commodities, these 10 leading exporters supply key global industries with the products and services that run the modern world.
Now I ask you: Which company’s international exports impact your life the most? Discuss in the comments how DowDuPont chemicals, Intel chips or General Electric equipment get used in your country!
