Indonesia became America's biggest solar panel supplier
Share of US solar panel imports by value (HS 854143), by supplier, 2022 vs 2025, as reported by the US.
- 1. Mexico, not China, now sells America the most goods
- 2. China's ASEAN trade is now almost double its US trade
- 3. America's duty-free parcels grew almost tenfold in nine years
- 4. Mexico's factories now outproduce Britain's and France's
- 5. The UAE sold more goods abroad than France in 2025
- 6. The EU now buys more US gas than Russian gas
- 7. Malaysia again sells more to America than to China
- 8. Brazil mines 93% of the world's niobium
- 9. More Vietnamese now work in industry than on farms
- 10. Indonesia set to use more palm oil than it exports
- 11. Factories now make more of Cambodia's economy than China's
- 12. China now buys more from Brazil than from Germany
- 13. Kazakhstan now sells Russia more than Germany does
- 14. China fell to third among America's suppliers in 2025
- 15. America overtook China as Taiwan's biggest export market
- 16. Mongolia's coal exports hit a record 90 million tonnes
- 17. Viet Nam's ports now handle more containers than Japan's
- 18. Liberia overtook Panama as the biggest flag by ship capacity
- 19. Nickel made Indonesia the world's fifth-biggest iron and steel exporter
- 20. Mexico again hosts more US investment than China
- 21. Mexico replaced China as America's top computer supplier
- 22. France fell from first to third among Côte d'Ivoire's suppliers
- 23. Wigs are nearly half of what North Korea sells China
- 24. Viet Nam overtook China as Morocco's top smartphone supplier
- 25. China became the top electric car supplier in 21 countries
- 26. Indonesia became America's biggest solar panel supplier
Indonesia's share of US solar panel imports in 2025, up from 1.7% in 2022: from 9th supplier to 1st.
Viet Nam, Thailand and Malaysia's combined share, 2022 vs 2025; Viet Nam alone fell from 35.4% to 11.8%.
Indonesia and Laos together supplied over half of US panel imports in 2025, from under 3% in 2022: America's panels still come from Southeast Asia, from different countries.
the numbers & method
| 2025 (%) | 2022 (grey bar) (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Indonesia | 36.8 | 1.7 |
| Laos | 15.1 | |
| India | 12.4 | 2.5 |
| Viet Nam | 11.8 | 35.4 |
| Malaysia | 8.0 | 14.5 |
| Thailand | 5.9 | 16.1 |
| Ethiopia | 4.5 | |
| South Korea | 0.5 | 13.4 |
Claim types Fact · Interpretation
UN Statistics Division, UN Comtrade (HS, annual), commodity 854143 (photovoltaic cells assembled in modules or made up into panels; an HS 2022 code, so no comparison before 2022), United States imports by partner as reported by the United States, US$, read from the UN Comtrade API via the progrss vault (un-comtrade, editions 'UN Comtrade HS 854143 M' versions cff696bfea (2022) and 75087a964f (2025); GUIDELINES §4.11). US$ million, 2022 then 2025: World 10,229.5 / 6,718.9 (2023 19,272.7; 2024 15,193.8); Indonesia 171.8 / 2,470.9 (2023 184.6; 2024 441.2); Laos not among the ten largest suppliers in 2022 (each below US$112.6 M, 1.1%) / 1,017.7 (2024 276.5); India 260.0 / 836.4; Viet Nam 3,623.2 / 795.4; Malaysia 1,479.8 / 540.4; Thailand 1,645.3 / 396.7; South Korea 1,373.7 / 34.1; Ethiopia not among the ten largest in 2022 / 304.1 (7th in 2025); Cambodia 806.4 / below US$34.1 M (not among the ten largest in 2025). Indonesia ranked 9th among US suppliers in 2022 and 1st in 2025; Viet Nam was 1st in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Shares are progrss calculations of each partner's value over the US-reported world total. US panel imports fell by more than half in value in 2025 (from US$15.2 bn in 2024); values are current dollars and panel prices fell over the period. Takeaway 3's 'moved one country on' is Interpretation.
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