Trade Watch Series

Mixed goods trade recovery, robust services growth, and elevated shipping stress

Early data pointed to a continued mild recovery in goods trade in 2024, with mixed performance across industries and regions.
Trade in services grew in the first quarter of 2024, with significant increases in travel and construction; international tourist arrivals neared pre-pandemic levels, though regional variations persisted.
Global container capacity stress and shipping rates remained high in May 2024, primarily due to disruptions in the Middle East and the Mediterranean Sea.

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Trade Watch—a product of the Trade and Regional Integration Unit of the World Bank—provides up-to-date data from an array of sources, along with analysis of recent trade developments.

About the Trade Watch series

Since April 2020, the World Bank has produced the COVID-19 Trade Watch series, which tracks trade flows in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The series relies on real-time shipping data, official trade statistics for goods and services, and other sources to provide a perspective on how trade is responding to the latest economic developments.