May 5, 2026
California Trade Report
Beacon Economics’ monthly analysis of California’s international trade activity
Welcome to the California Trade Report, Beacon Economics’ monthly analysis of California’s international trade activity. This report analyzes data released by the U.S. Census Bureau’s Foreign Trade Division and pinpoints important trends in the state’s import/export industry, identifying potential effects on the state’s economy. The report is only a sampling of the kind of economic research and data analysis available from Beacon Economics.
Shocking Fuel Prices, Disoriented Exporters: War Is Bad For Business
California led all 50 states in merchandise imports in March.
The U.S. Commerce Department reports that California was again the nation’s leading state-of-destination for imported goods. The state’s 14.2% share of all U.S. merchandise imports in March was valued at $42.952 billion, a 5.6% increase over the $40.662 billion imported into California in March 2025. Texas, meanwhile, accounted for 13.6% of America’s merchandise import trade.
- Manufactured imports in March were up 7.7% % to $38.559 billion from $35.818 billion one year earlier.
- Non-manufactured imports in March were valued at $4.393 billion, down by 9.3% from the $4.843 billion in non-manufactured goods the state imported in March 2025.
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE NUMBERS
As always, Beacon Economics advises against reading too much into month-to-month fluctuations in state export statistics, especially when focusing on specific commodities or destinations. Significant variations can occur due to unusual developments or exceptional one-off trades and may not be indicative of underlying trends. For that reason, Beacon Economics compares the latest three months for which data are available (i.e., January – March) with the corresponding period one year earlier. Please note that the numbers cited in this report are nominal values.
LEADING EXPORT COMMODITIES
The table below displays the latest year-over-year changes in California’s merchandise export trade during the first quarter of 2026. Twelve commodity groups posted three-month export totals exceeding $1 billion. Five recorded year-over-year gains.
DESTINATIONS
Thirteen foreign markets imported one billion dollars or more in goods from California in the first quarter of this year. Not surprisingly, trade policy disputes helped drive shipments to Mexico and Canada down by 14.8% from same quarter the year before. China also continued its slide as an export destination for California merchandise as South Korea claimed a larger share of California’s merchandise export trade than did China. Taiwan and Japan had already overtaken China. The Netherlands and Germany ranked among the Top Ten destinations for California exports.
MODE OF TRANSPORT
THE OUTLOOK
Note: The U.S. Commerce Department has been publishing state-of-destination import statistics since 2008. Beacon Economics has long felt that state import data provide a highly misleading indication of the state in which imported goods were ultimately consumed. As a major gateway for the nation’s foreign trade, California has consistently been credited with an out-sized share of U.S. merchandise imports. However, we now believe that the process by which state-of-destination import statistics are compiled has become stable enough to be used to measure relative increases or decreases in the value of imported goods consumed or otherwise used by residents or businesses located in California. We strongly emphasize that we are solely interested in identifying trends. We continue to believe it is not useful to use state export and import statistics to calculate a state trade balance.
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