Sustainable trade

Sustainable Trade Index 2022

Published 08 November 2022

The Hinrich-IMD Sustainable Trade Index (STI) measures how effectively 30 major trading economies are geared for long-term economic growth, environmental protection, and societal development across 70 indicators.

About the STI 2022

Geopolitical tensions and the global economic slowdown have made economies more inward-looking. The sustainability of trade must remain a fundamental objective of the international community to ensure long-term economic growth and value creation. This year’s STI, developed in partnership with IMD’s World Competitiveness Center, examines the key factors affecting these trends.

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Overview of the STI 2022 findings

We summarize the key insights of the Sustainable Trade Index 2022 in a three-minute video. Find out who the top performers are and the factors of their success.

New Zealand reached the top position of the overall STI by performing robustly in all Pillars. While it places 7th in the Economic Pillar, it takes the top spot in both the Societal and Environmental Pillars.
Japan and South Korea which held the top spot in STI 2020, were ranked 4th and 8th respectively in this year’s index.

A combination of technological innovation, robust macroeconomic fundamentals, and an open trade environment underline the performance of countries at the top of the Pillar rankings.
Results among the top five economies show that a healthy population along with educational achievement in combination with social mobility characterize high-performing economies.
Top economies also strive to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions and related externalities and ratify relevant environmental conventions. They also show efforts at reducing their energy consumption and their emissions.

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The three pillars of sustainability

Each economy in the STI is scored across three pillars of trade sustainability – economic, societal, and environmental, which are supported by 70 individual indicators. Download the executive summary infographic and other resources to find out more.

Deep dives and graphics

Deep dives are standalone reports developed in partnership with leading global economic policy analysts and graphics specialists, that each focus on a specific theme impacting sustainable trade identified in the STI.

The infographics by Visual Capitalist will use data-driven visuals to provide an overview of some of the key themes and findings of STI 2022.

Learn more with our Sustainable Trade Index 2022 resources.

The Sustainable Trade Index 2022 dataset and economy-specific reports

The detailed results for the 30 economies reviewed in the STI are presented in the main report and an overview can be found in the Executive Summary. An interactive Excel workbook with the overall rankings and indicator rankings, and country profiles is also available for download.

Individual reports with focused highlights for each economy covered in the index are also available in our download pack.

1^st	New Zealand	16^th	Mexico
2^nd	United Kingdom	17^th	Cambodia
3^rd	Hong Kong, SAR	18^th	Indonesia
4^th	Japan	19^th	Ecuador
5^th	Singapore	20^th	Vietnam
6^th	Australia	21^st	Peru
7^th	Canada	22^nd	Sri Lanka
8^th	South Korea	23^rd	Laos
9^th	United States	24^th	Bangladesh
10^th	Taiwan	25^th	Brunei
11^th	Chile	26^th	India
12^th	Philippines	27^th	Papua New Guinea
13^th	China	28^th	Myanmar
14^th	Malaysia	29^th	Pakistan
15^th	Thailand	30^th	Russia

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The Sustainable Trade Index is currently in its sixth edition. Download other editions below:

Sustainable Trade Index 2024	Sustainable Trade Index 2018
Sustainable Trade Index 2023	Sustainable Trade Index 2016
Sustainable Trade Index 2020

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