Netherlands Europe’s major exporter of bicycles

© ANP
The Netherlands is Europe’s largest exporter of bicycles. Last year the value of bicycles exported by the Netherlands totalled 793 million euros, an increase by 14 percent compared to 2014. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reports that the Netherlands and Germany are the leading bicycle-exporting countries in Europe.

Dutch bicycle exporters account for approximately one-quarter of EU exports. The bulk of Dutch bicycles for export are manufactured domestically, the remainder are imported and subsequently re-exported. Worldwide, Asia is the largest bicycle manufacturer. China and Taiwan are the undisputed leaders. The Netherlands occupies third position on the global ranking list.

Germany and Taiwan main bicycle-exporting countries

The Netherlands is the largest exporter and manufacturer of bicycles in Europe. Yet, the Netherlands also imported bicycles last year, up to a total value of 536 million euros. Germany and Taiwan were the main suppliers. Together, these two countries account for more than 60 percent of bicycles imported into the Netherlands.

More e-bikes imported

The import of electric bikes into the Netherlands is growing; last year by 46 percent to more than 103 million euros, i.e. nearly 20 percent of total imports of bicycles. More than half of e-bikes were manufactured in China. The Netherlands mainly exports conventional, non-electric bikes; only 8 percent of bikes destined for export are electrically assisted.