Last year, Arkansas exported $6.5 billion in goods, with international trade supporting more than 313,000 jobs in the state. As the headquarters for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., Arkansas has seen firsthand how engagement in the global economy can drive growth and create jobs.

• In Arkansas, 313,100 jobs were supported by trade, representing 18.7% of all jobs in the state.^1,2
• In 2022, 2,217 companies exported goods from Arkansas of which 77% were small- and medium-sized enterprises. In 2021, 59,100 people were employed by affiliates of companies at least 50% foreign-owned.^3,4

• Arkansas exported $6.5 billion in goods to foreign markets in 2023, a 10% increase compared to 2022. Arkansas’s largest markets were:⁵
  • Canada ($1.6 billion)
  • Mexico ($1.1 billion)
  • Japan ($393.9 million)
  • China ($346.0 million)
  • France ($249.6 million)
• Agricultural exports are important to Arkansas's economy, totaling $4.3 billion in 2022, according to the USDA.⁶
• Since 2014, the U.S. Export-Import Bank has financed $367 million in exports from 30 companies in Arkansas.⁷

• From 2022-2023, 5,680 international students were enrolled in Arkansas colleges and universities and contributed $147 million to the Arkansas economy.¹⁰

• Since 1961, 1,026 Peace Corps volunteers from Arkansas have served in dozens of countries overseas.¹¹

1. https://s3.amazonaws.com/brt.org/Business-Roundtable_TradeandAmericanJobs2022.pdf
2. https://www.businessroundtable.org/policy-perspectives/trade-international/benefits-of-trade-data
3. https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/Press-Release/edb/edbrel2021.pdf
4. https://www.bea.gov/sites/default/files/2023-08/imne0823_0.pdf
5. https://www.trade.gov/data-visualization/state-economy-and-trade-factsheets
6. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/state-fact-sheets.aspx#.U2ERwbQzqX8
7. https://www.exim.gov/customer-map/
8. https://www.mcc.gov/work-with-us/mcc-business/vehicles/
9. https://ustda.gov/ustda-success-by-state/
10. https://www.nafsa.org/policy-and-advocacy/policy-resources/nafsa-international-student-economic-value-tool-v2
11. https://www.peacecorps.gov/stories/peace-corps-announces-top-2023-volunteer-producing-states/