According to data from the economic portal Trading Economics and the Office of the US Trade Representative, in 2023 the United States imported goods from Angola worth around 1.16 billion dollars, while US exports to the Angolan market totalled around 599 million dollars.
In total, trade in that year reached around 1.759 billion dollars.
In 2024, trade between the two countries picked up again, with the United States importing 1.91 billion dollars from Angola – mainly oil, representing an increase of almost 65 percent.
Angola bought goods from the US worth around 682 million dollars, an increase of 14 percent, bringing the volume of trade to around 2.592 billion.
After this positive development last year, the data for the beginning of 2025 reveal a significant drop, at a time when Luanda will host, starting on Sunday, the 17th edition of the US-Africa Business Summit, the most important business forum between the United States and the African continent.
Between January and April, the United States imported Angolan products worth around 197 million dollars, and in April imports did not exceed 25.5 million dollars, a value that represents a reduction of 88 percent compared to the same month last year.
Angola imported 482 million dollars of North American products during this period.
According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), oil remained Angola's main export product to the United States, accounting for 13.7 million dollars of the total exported in April this year, while diamonds totaled 10.3 million dollars. On the US side, exports to Angola were aircraft parts worth 39.5 million dollars, poultry meat (9.33 million) and refined petroleum products (4.73 million).
Angola benefits from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) program, which grants tariff exemptions to more than 6,000 products, but in April US President Donald Trump announced an increase in tariffs for virtually all US trading partners.
However, the measure is not expected to directly affect Angola, since more than 90 percent of Angolan exports to the United States continue to consist of oil, which has been exempted from additional tariffs.
Luanda will host the 17th edition of the US-Africa Business Summit from 22 to 25 June, with over 1,500 participants expected – including Heads of State, Prime Ministers, African Ministers, senior US Government officials and business leaders from both continents – at this event co-organised by the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) and the Government of the Republic of Angola.
Participants will address the development of trade, investment and economic partnerships in sectors such as energy, infrastructure, health, digital technologies, agribusiness, creative industries and critical minerals.
