Jonathan Fullwood.
With trade negotiations apparently looming, one may wonder with whom the UK trades most. Given the geospatial aspect of the data, perhaps a map may help. Even better, how about a cartogram?
Cartograms can be formed by distorting a map so that the areas of countries correspond to the relative values of some measure.
The two images below are based on import and export data for the UK’s top 25 trading partners for the first five months of 2016. The bigger the country appears on the map, the more of the UK’s exports (imports) they account for. Countries outside the top 25 are shaded grey.
Figure 1: Exports
Source: HM Revenue & customs Overseas Trade Statistics
Figure 2: Imports
Source: HM Revenue & customs Overseas Trade Statistics
Jonathan Fullwood works in the Bank’s Advanced Analytics Division.
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It would be nice if the data behind this graphic could be made public. And also whether and how this data accounts for the Rotterdam effect.