The difference between import and export is that import connotes bringing commodities into the home country, while export means trading home products in foreign lands. Import and export are two crucial activities of international trading activities.
These activities help domestic and international businesses, wherein the purchaser and seller benefit. Import refers to acquiring products from outside the country.
Key Takeaways
- Import is the process of bringing goods or services into a country from another country for sale or use.
- Export is the process of selling goods or services produced in one country to another country.
- Import is an inflow of goods or services into a country, while export is an outflow of goods or services from a country.
Import vs Export
Import is a process of bringing goods or services into a country from another country. This can include products that are purchased from foreign manufacturers, raw materials or components. Export is a process of selling goods or services produced domestically to another country. This can include finished products, raw materials, or services provided by domestic companies.
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The purpose of the import is to make products available that are not available in the domestic country, while the purpose of export is to distribute its product and make the company globally known. Export pertains to selling home products outside the country for monetary gains through bilateral agreements.
Excessive of both imports and export can hamper the home country’s economy.
Comparison Table
Parameter of Comparison | Import | Export |
---|---|---|
Definition | A service or a commodity brought into the country | A surplus is produced and sold outside the country for global exposure. |
Aim | To bring goods and services from another country to the home country | Selling home counties good and services to other countries |
Economy strategy | Import is done to serve needs or close the gap. | Export is done to gain monetary benefits. |
Effects on trade | GDP drops if import exceeds a notion limit. | Overall, a noticeable trade profit occurs. |
Advantage | The foreign country gets more trade advantage | The home country gets more of the monetary gain. |
Representation | High Import demand means more robust domestic demand | High export demand means trade surplus and foreign demand |
Representation | High Import demand means more robust domestic demand | High export demand means trade surplus and foreign demand |
Currency | Strengthens the currency; if a currency is weak | The benefits of the currency are stronger |
What is Import?
Import is when products, goods, and facilities are brought in by the citizen of a country to their home through a ‘channel’ when there is a dearth of specific products or certain products are in demand.
This channel can be via transportation, digital platform, email interaction, phone interaction, etc. Import is external products that fulfil consumerism demand through purchasing goods and services outside their country.
What is Export?
Export is a move or a tactic to increase the global presence through selling goods, commodities, products, and vegetation to another country. Export fosters the benefits of economic trade by understanding foreign markets through agreements between involved trading parties.
Export is considered when there is an increase in some produce or reservoir in a country by sending out the products to gain self-sufficiency and adequate growth in the gross domestic product (GDP).
The foreign incomes also give a competitive advantage to the seller in the home country.
Main Differences Between Import and Export
Definition
Import means bringing in merchandise, commodities, and products with the intention to buy, sell, and resell to serve the demands of their own country. Export means sending, selling, and trading products from their nation’s gross output to gain monetary benefit and make space for more products.
Aim
Import aims to serve the demands of consumerism marked with changing demands and trends. Export aims to benefit their country’s economy by being present in the global market through marketing, selling, and leasing anything that the world needs.
It can be simple as a hairpin to as big as machinery and merchandising rights.
Economic Strategy
Import does close the gap of specific product demands in their home country; the monetary rewards mainly rest in the hands of the importer. The profit margins are thin when one product is purchased, transported, and reached out with limited profit margins.
While exporting one’s product gives an upper edge, it has a surplus of one or more products and gives room to choose to whom and where to export its products.
The sense of choice and decision power is exported super potentiality.
Effect on Trade
The effect of both import and export can be positive and negative. For example, if too many foreign cosmetics are imported, local cosmetic brands will see a demise.
But if foreign cosmetics are brought to the limit, the local brands can fight with competitive prices at a cheaper rate.
Hence, how one market sells, advertises and serves the gaps between demand and supply affects positively and negatively both import and export.
Advantage
Import advantage is that the act can see smiles on people’s faces when they get to products they love from other lands, but the earning out of the selling is minimal.
Also, import backs of heightened domestic demand. In export, the residents, businessmen, and government benefit through mutual bilateral agreements wherein they sell commodities, products, and manpower and get the choice to decide the selling cost.
Representation
In the times of globalization, the more products a country can export, prove that they are self-sufficient, providers, and creators and have a more substantial presence in the international market. On the other hand, import fills the customer’s needs, but if overindulgence is acted upon, the human development index suffers.
Currency
Import disturbs the local currency if many goods are brought from outside the country at a wholesale price. If the local currency is powerful, their economy can fight back.
This is the reason when a currency weakens, it only gets weakened. The countries must know that the way to keep their currency stable is by only importing products that are crucial for their country’s consumers.
Export improves per capita income through economic agreements of seller rights agreeing on international market demands.
This trading methodology gives a sense of leadership, ownership and a global presence.
- https://www.elibrary.imf.org/view/IMF024/15739-9781451969344/15739-9781451969344/15739-9781451969344_A005.xml?language=en&redirect=true
- https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/26285/1/559514182.PDF
- https://www.jbc.org/content/280/32/29158.short
Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.
I am into import export business and I can confirm that the differences given here are correct.