International
support

In more than 90 countries

Belgium

Key data Change country

Economic and political overview

Economic Overview

Situated between the UK, Germany and France, Europe’s three main economies, Belgium benefits from a strategic geographical position. Despite facing global economic challenges, Belgium's economy displayed remarkable resilience in 2023, with GDP growing 1.4%. However, growth in the first half of 2024 was subdued, mainly due to weak domestic demand. Private consumption rose only moderately, hindered by declining purchasing power and slow employment growth. While business investment grew significantly, driven by exceptional transactions, household investment remained constrained. For the year as a whole, the IMF estimated a 1.1% rise in economic activity. Private consumption is expected to rise moderately over the forecast horizon, reflecting modest disposable income growth. Despite declining, the saving rate should remain high in 2025-26 due to weak consumer confidence. Business investment will continue to grow at a slower pace, supported by lower financing costs and improved external demand. Overall, investment is projected to increase by 1.8% in 2025 and 1.9% in 2026, bolstered by the RRP (EU Commission). GDP growth is forecast at 1.2% this year, and 1.3% in 2026 (IMF).

In 2024, the government budget deficit increased to 4.6% of GDP. Savings from phasing out energy price mitigation measures and competitiveness support (0.4% of GDP) were offset by a rise in structural spending and slower revenue growth from indirect taxes. The increase in expenditure was driven by ageing-related costs, public debt interest, and higher government investment. In 2025, the deficit is expected to rise further to 45.2% of GDP, as no major new measures are planned (IMF). Expenditure on social benefits will continue to grow, and interest costs will increase due to higher debt levels and refinancing rates, despite falling interest rates. These increases will be partly offset by a moderation in government investment after the election year. In 2024, general government debt increased moderately to around 103.4% of GDP, mainly due to a debt-reducing stock flow adjustment from the lower balance of short-term state notes. In 2025 and 2026, debt is projected to rise more rapidly to 107.2% of GDP (EU Commission forecast), driven by the government deficit, despite the fact that federal and regional governments have recently taken steps toward consolidation and sovereign bond spreads have remained stable. Meanwhile, the withdrawal of energy support measures drove inflation up to 4.3% in 2024 (from 2.3% one year earlier) but easing inflationary pressures over the forecast horizon are set to bring inflation down to 2.1% in 2025 and 2% in 2026 (IMF).

Employment growth slowed in the first half of 2024, mainly due to declines in the industrial and retail sectors. It remained sluggish in the second half, reaching just 0.3% for the year. Employment is expected to increase steadily in the coming years, with the rise in the retirement age likely to boost labour market participation, while the unemployment rate is projected to remain stable at around 5.7%. Wage growth, driven by automatic wage indexation, is expected to slow due to the anticipated deceleration of inflation. The low labour market participation rate remains a major challenge for Belgium in the coming years, with unemployment disproportionately affecting young people, non-European immigrants and the region of Wallonia as a whole. Overall, Belgian citizens enjoy a high GDP per capita, estimated on average at USD 58,256 by the IMF for 2025.

 
Main Indicators 2023 (E)2024 (E)2025 (E)2026 (E)2027 (E)
GDP (billions USD) 632.40662.18689.36712.13731.86
GDP (Constant Prices, Annual % Change) 1.41.11.21.31.3
GDP per Capita (USD) 53,85456,12958,24860,00261,453
General Government Balance (in % of GDP) -4.6-4.6-5.2-5.4-5.7
General Government Gross Debt (in % of GDP) 105.2105.0107.1109.8112.7
Inflation Rate (%) 2.34.32.12.02.0
Unemployment Rate (% of the Labour Force) 5.55.75.75.65.5
Current Account (billions USD) -6.13-2.15-0.201.953.59
Current Account (in % of GDP) -1.0-0.3-0.00.30.5

Source: IMF – World Economic Outlook Database , October 2021

Country Risk

See the country risk analysis provided by La Coface.

 

+

Main Sectors of Industry

Belgium’s strategic geographical position, its highly developed transport infrastructure, the wide range of services and its influence in industry and high tech have contributed to the development of its economy. Agriculture contributes a small amount of the national GDP (0.8%) and employs 1% of the active population (World Bank, latest data available). The main crops are sugar beets, vegetables and fruits, meat and milk. According to data by StatBel, weather conditions, particularly the abundance of rainfall, had a definite impact on the economic situation of Belgian agriculture in 2024. They disrupted all stages of field crop production, with significant repercussions for both sowing and yields, while price rises could not compensate for the loss of income. However, net value added in the agricultural sector was estimated to increase by 4.2%. On the one hand, the production value of the agricultural sector was projected to decrease by 0.7% compared to 2023, but on the other, intermediate consumption was anticipated to fall by 2.7%.

The industrial sector accounts for 18.5% of GDP, employing 19% of the workforce. There are significant discrepancies between the three Belgian regions: while Flanders has succeeded in developing the second-largest petrochemical industry in the world, Wallonia is in the middle of restructuring, following the closure of its collieries and a large number of steel plants. Brussels distinguishes itself in the areas of telecommunications, software development and the pharmaceutical and automobile industries. Despite a decline in its contribution to GDP in recent years, the manufacturing industry remains important for the Belgian economy, accounting for 11%. The latest data from StatBel shows that the total value of Belgian industrial production decreased from EUR 216 billion in 2022 to 196 billion in 2023, representing a 9% decrease on an annual basis. In the same period, the largest total value was recorded by the manufacture of food products. Chemical products, basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations rounded out the top three largest industrial sectors.

The country’s economy is largely oriented towards services. In fact, the tertiary sector accounts for 71.1% of the GDP and employs 79% of the active population. Brussels, the hub of several European institutions, numerous diplomatic representations and different interest groups, has essentially based its economy on services. Tourism is also an important sector of the economy: a total of 44,696,602 overnight stays were recorded in Belgium in 2023, representing a 4% increase compared to 2022 and a 5% rise compared to 2019. Concerning the banking sector, the Belgian banks’ total assets on a consolidated basis stood at EUR 1,156 billion at the end of 2023 (European Banking Federation, latest data available).

 
Breakdown of Economic Activity By Sector Agriculture Industry Services
Employment By Sector (in % of Total Employment) 1.1 19.4 79.5
Value Added (in % of GDP) 0.8 18.5 71.1
Value Added (Annual % Change) 2.1 0.2 1.3

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 
Monetary Indicators 20162017201820192020
Euro (EUR) - Average Annual Exchange Rate For 1 USD 0.940.890.850.890.88

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

 

+

Foreign Trade

The Belgian economy is particularly open, with foreign trade representing 169% of GDP (World Bank, latest data available). In addition to being considered an export champion (12th in the world rank - WTO), Belgium plays an important role as a transit and distribution centre for other countries in the European Union. According to data from the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency, the majority of exports comprise chemical products (26.3%, even though their value was down EUR 28.9 billion from the previous year), mineral products (13%), transport equipment (11.4%), machinery and equipment (10.2%), base metals (7.3%), and plastics (6.6%). The main imports are chemical products (24.2%), mineral products (17.4%), machinery and equipment (13.2%), transport equipment (12%) and base metals (6.3% - data for 2023).

Belgium's role as a regional logistical hub makes its economy vulnerable to shifts in foreign demand, particularly with EU trading partners (who accounted for 67.3% of exports and 62.1% of imports in 2023). Germany remained the first customer (18.6%) in 2023, followed by France (13.5%), the Netherlands (13.2%), the U.S. (6%), and the UK (5.4%). The main suppliers were the Netherlands (26.5%), Germany (16.8%), France (14.3%), the United States (9.7%), and China  (8.4% - data Belgian Foreign Trade Agency).

According to WTO data, in 2023, exports amounted to USD 562.4 billion, while imports reached USD 546.7 billion (-11.8% and -11.6% y-o-y, respectively). Exports of services totalled USD 148.3 billion, as imports stood at USD 155.6 billion. The country’s trade balance is generally positive, but in 2023 was negative for the second year in a row (-0.6% of GDP, from -1.5% one year earlier – data World Bank).  According to the latest data from the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency, in the period Jan-Sep 2024, Belgium exported EUR 371.1 billion and imported EUR 356.6 billion. During the period, the EU accounted for 77.1% of total exports and 71.4% of imports.

 
Foreign Trade Values 20192020202120222023
Imports of Goods (million USD) 428,878397,957527,496618,868546,765
Exports of Goods (million USD) 446,910421,842549,253637,673562,439
Imports of Services (million USD) 124,500119,336134,299138,533155,668
Exports of Services (million USD) 123,667118,454135,467137,284148,315

Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Indicators 20192020202120222023
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) 165.5157.0177.4192.0168.9
Trade Balance (million USD) 6,35910,17812,919-7653,024
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) 2,5077,60211,378-7,960-3,917
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 1.5-6.712.85.8-6.8
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 2.9-6.014.75.8-7.1
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 82.577.887.896.784.8
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 83.079.289.695.384.2

Source: World Bank ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Forecasts 20242025 (e)2026 (e)2027 (e)2028 (e)
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) -2.21.72.93.03.1
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) -2.92.13.23.33.6

Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data

Note: (e) Estimated Data

 
International Economic Cooperation
Belgium is a member of the following international economic organisations: Benelux Economic Union, ICC, OECD, European Union, IMF, G-9, G-10, WTO, among others. For the full list of economic and other international organisations in which participates Belgium click here. International organisation membership of Belgium is also outlined here.
Free Trade Agreements
The complete and up-to-date list of Free Trade Agreements signed by Belgium can be consulted here.
 

Main Partner Countries

Main Customers
(% of Exports)		 2023
Germany 16.3%
Netherlands 13.5%
France 12.7%
United States 7.0%
United Kingdom 5.9%
See More Countries 44.6%
Main Suppliers
(% of Imports)		 2023
Netherlands 21.2%
Germany 12.5%
France 11.6%
United States 6.7%
Ireland 4.5%
See More Countries 43.5%

Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data

 

+

Political Outline

Current Political Leaders
King: Philippe of Belgium (since 21 August 2013);
Prime Minister: Alexander De Croo (since 1 October 2020)
Next Election Dates
House of Representatives: June 2029
Senate: July 2029
Current Political Context
In June of 2024, the Federal and European Parliament elections were held concurrently in Belgium. The outcomes of the federal elections turned out to be rather complicated as many political conversations took place. Hence, King Philippe tasked Bart De Wever, who is the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) party leader, with the responsibility of assembling a federal government. The ‘Arizona’ coalition which was proposed consisted of N-VA, Mouvement Réformateur (MR), Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams (CD&V), Les Engagés, along with Vooruit, the Dutch-speaking socialist party. Sadly, Belgium has yet to assemble a new federal government after the elections took place back in June 2024, so as it stands Alexander De Croo remains as the caretaker Prime Minister.
In the elections for the European Parliament, Belgium's two dozen seats were contested between multiple parties. With a 14.5% vote share, Vlaams Belang (VB) claimed three seats while New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) and Reformist Movement (MR) also grabbed three seats each with a vote share of 13.96% and 12.7% respectively. The Workers' Party of Belgium (PTB-PVDA) gained further popularity allowing them to increase their total to two seats, this demonstrates how both right-wing and left-wing populist parties are gaining support.
Regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Belgium supported the sanctions placed on Russia by the European Union. Internally, significant social opposition emerged in Belgium during January 2025 due to the pension changes being proposed. The strike which was nationwide interrupted air and rail travel with close to half if not more of Brussels airport traffic being cancelled and public transport services facing severe curtailment. The strike captured the government’s conundrum where they were trying to push forward with their reform agenda but were facing stiff public resistance.
Main Political Parties
Historically, parties are divided between French and Flemish groups, fuelling intercommunal tensions. The main parties following the 2024 elections are:

- New-Flemish Alliance (N-VA): right-wing, pushes for Flemish independence from Belgium, Eurosceptic
- Flemish Interest (Vlaams Belang): right-wing populist, pushing for Flemish independence
- Reform Movement (MR): centre-right, francophone party
- Workers' Party of Belgium (PTB-PVDA): far-left (ideologies: communism, marxism, marxism-leninism, socialism)
- Socialist Party (PS): centre-left, largest francophone party
- Vooruit: social democratic, formerly known as the Flemish Socialist Party
- Christian, Democratic and Flemish Party (CD&V): centre-right
- Les Engagés (LE): centre, francophone party
- Open Flemish Liberal Democrats (Open VLD): centre-right, Flemish party
- Groen: green, Flemish party
- Ecolo: green, francophone party
- Démocrate fédéraliste indépendant (DéFI): social-liberal, francophone.
Executive Power
Chief of the state is the King, who plays a largely ceremonial and symbolic role. The King's primary political function is to designate a political leader (Prime Minister) to form a new government. Following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party (or the leader of the majority coalition) is usually appointed Prime Minister by the King and then approved by the parliament for a four-year term. The King, on recommendation of the Prime Minister, formally appoints the Council of Ministers. At the federal level, executive power is wielded by the Council of Ministers, with each minister heading a governmental department, with a maximum of 15 ministers. The Prime Minister chairs the Council.
Legislative Power
The Belgian Parliament is bicameral and consists of the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives. The Chamber has 150 directly elected members by proportional representation vote. The Senate has 60 members; 50 members indirectly elected by the community and regional parliaments based on their election results, and 10 elected by the 50 other senators. All the members of the Parliament serve 5-year terms.
 

+