Top Selling Products From Each State

September 1, 2015 by Sam Stebbins

ThinkstockPhotos-99199333Americans are used to seeing the “made in China” label on many products they buy, particularly clothing and electronics. A great many products, however, start their journey in the United States and are destined for foreign shores.

Every state in the nation exports hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods overseas. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the most valuable exported product in each state.

Click here to see each states’ largest export. 

It is important to note that while a state may export hundreds of millions, or even billions, of dollars worth of a particular product, it may not actually be producing very much of that product within the state. By this definition, the state is the last place the product is packaged before leaving for another country.

For example, Hawaii exported more than $560 million worth of petroleum in 2014. This amounted to nearly 40% of the state’s total exports. Although the state has no natural oil extraction, no reserves, and very few refining operations, it serves as a last port of call for the petroleum before it leaves for destinations abroad.

Of course, there are a great many states where the chief export is a product the state is well-known for. Texas is known as an oil-producing state, and its largest exports are petroleum products. This is also the single largest product category that any state exports — Texas shipped $64 billion worth of petroleum in 2014. Similarly, given the state’s massive aeronautics industry, it is not surprising that more than half of Washington’s exports were in aircraft and aircraft parts. Notably, the state employs roughly half of all Boeing employees.

In other cases, the major export product may not be iconic in the state. For example, Massachusetts is known for its medical and technology industry. However, the state’s most valuable export is gold. Massachusetts is home to a major refinery that ships nearly $2 billion worth of the precious metal to countries such as the United Kingdom and Switzerland.

There is no consistent relationship between the value of a state’s export and its impact on a state economy. Some products, for example, are more likely to stay within the country than others. In Florida, for example, the orange-growing industry contributes more than $5 billion to state GDP. Oranges, however, are not even among in the top 20 exports from the state.

The largest recipients of each state’s biggest exports are usually either Canada, Mexico, or China, which are the nation’s three largest trading partners overall. It is worth noting that these countries are not necessarily the final destinations of the exported good. Montana’s chief export is coal and petroleum products, and Canada is the largest single destination of these goods. However, a very large share of the Montana coal is then processed in Canada and shipped to destinations in Asia.

To identify the top selling products from each state, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the most valuable export from each state based on data collected annually by the U.S. Census Bureau. The government tracks exports at a very granular level. Therefore, we combined a number of similar exports into single categories. For example, dump trucks designed for off highway use and diesel engine trucks, along with other truck-related goods, were combined into a single export category.

The largest export as a share of a state’s total exports, a state’s exports as a share of all U.S. exports, and a state’s largest international trade partners also came from the U.S. Census. Employment figures by industry in each state came from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW).

These are the largest exports in each state.

1. Alabama
> Largest export: Cars and passenger vehicles
> 2014 Cars and passenger vehicles value: $6.64 billion
> Pct. change in cars and Passenger vehicles export value (2013-2014): 2.8%
> Cars and passenger vehicles as share of total state exports: 34.0%

Of all of Alabama’s exports, cars are the most valuable. Passenger vehicle and car exports totalled $6.64 billion last year. The state is home to several major automobile manufacturing plants, including those operated by Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, and Honda. Each plant produces over a hundred thousand vehicles each year.

2. Alaska
> Largest export:
Fish
> 2014 fish value: $2.07 billion
> Pct. change in fish export value (2013-2014): 2.9%
> Fish as share of total state exports: 40.1%

Alaska is perhaps best known for its oil industry, yet fish is actually the state’s biggest export — and by a wide margin. Fish accounted for more than 40% of Alaska’s total exports, which include products such as oil and zinc — both among the state’s most valuable exports. No state’s fishing industry came even close to rivaling the industry’s relative importance to Alaska’s economy. The closest was Maine, which exported $33 million in fish, although that figure does not include Lobster.

3. Arizona
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $2.23 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): -19.7%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 10.6%

More than 40% of all of Arizona’s exports were shipped to Mexico. By product category, aircraft was the most valuable of all the state’s exports. More than 10% of all export value in Arizona came from aircraft and aircraft parts. Helicopter and engine manufacturer Honeywell Aerospace is headquartered in Arizona and has facilities throughout the state.

4. Arkansas
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $1.63 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): -11.7%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 23.7%

According to the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Arkansas is home to nearly 180 aerospace companies. With numerous companies operating in the industry. Nearly 24% of the state’s total export value comes from aircraft and aircraft parts. The total value of airplanes and airplane parts leaving the state for destinations abroad was $1.63 last year, more than any other industry in Arkansas.

5. California
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft aarts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $10.00 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 6.7%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 5.7%

California’s exports of airplanes and aerospace part totalled $10 billion last year, more than any other product leaving the state. Relative to the size of the state’s total exports, California’s aeronautics exports are actually smaller than 12 other states. In Washington and Hawaii, for example, airplane parts accounted for 53.7% and 31.9% of all state exports, respectively. In contrast California’s airplanes and parts exports accounted for just 5.7% of all of the state’s exports.

6. Colorado
> Largest export:
Beef
> 2014 beef value: $0.79 billion
> Pct. change in beef export value (2013-2014): 16.9%
> Beef as share of total state exports: 9.5%

Colorado’s economy is relatively diverse with no single product type accounting for more than 10% of the state’s exports. Beef, however, which is the biggest export, has had an increasing share of the state total exports, with value rising from 7.9% in 2013 to 9.5% in 2015. Colorado is the third-largest exporter of beef in the country behind Kansas and Nebraska. It is the only state among the five largest livestock exporters that is not located in the nation’s farm belt. According to the Colorado Department of Agriculture, there are roughly 15,000 beef producing operations in the state, and and nearly one-third of counties depend on the cattle industry.

7. Connecticut
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $6.71 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): -8.5%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 43.5%

Aircraft and aircraft parts made up 42.1% of all export revenue in Connecticut — by far the largest of any product category. Sikorsky, one of the country’s largest manufacturers of both military and commercial helicopters, has a manufacturing facility in Trumbull. Sikorsky recently made headlines when its parent company United Technologies sold it to defense technology giant Lockheed Martin. The industry’s total state exports totalled $6.71 billion in 2014, making Connecticut the fifth largest exporter of aircraft in the country.

8. Delaware
> Largest export:
Medication
> 2014 medication value: $1.59 billion
> Pct. change in medication export value (2013-2014): 29.5%
> Medication as share of total state exports: 30.0%

Medication products were far and away the most valuable exports in Delaware, totalling $1.59 billion and accounting for 30% of all products shipped out of the state. Delaware is not a large state, nor does it have a very large economy — and all of the state’s exports accounted for just 0.3% of U.S. exports.

9. Florida
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $4.78 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 0.3%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 8.2%

While the Sunshine State is famous for its oranges, this product category is not the state’s chief export. The aircraft manufacturing industry actually generates the most value in exports, at roughly $4.8 billion in 2014. According to Enterprise Florida, the state’s aviation and aerospace industry is the second largest in the country, with more than 80,000 workers. Large defense and aerospace companies such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Sikorsky, among others, have major operations in the state.

10. Georgia
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $6.90 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 6.6%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 17.5%

With a total value of $6.9 billion, Georgia is fourth largest exporter of aircraft and aircraft parts in the country. Aircraft and parts accounted for 17.5% of the state’s total export value, up 2.4 percentage points from 2012. Lockheed Martin has a facility in Marietta, Georgia that manufactures the $44.1 million C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft. Woodpulp is Georgia’s next most valuable export, accounting for 4.4% of the state’s total export value.

11. Hawaii
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $569 million
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): 433.8%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 39.2%

Though Hawaii has two refineries in the Honolulu port area, it does not produce any petroleum on its own. In fact, largely for this reason, Hawaii is the most petroleum-dependent state in the nation. Enormous quantities of oil pass through Hawaii both as imports and exports. Between 2013 and 2014 the value of Hawaii’s petroleum exports more than quadrupled from 106.7 million to 569.3 million, surpassing aircraft and aircraft parts as the state’s most valuable export.

12. Idaho
> Largest export:
Memory chips
> 2014 memory chips value: $1.41 billion
> Pct. change in memory chips export value (2013-2014): -29.5%
> Memory chips as share of total state exports: 27.4%

Most people might assume that Idaho’s biggest export is the potato. In fact, potatoes are not even in the top five. Instead, the largest exporting industry in the state by far is electronic components. Exports of memory chips alone were roughly worth $1.4 billion in 2014, and the combined value of state’s next biggest exports, circuits and other miscellaneous computer parts, was nearly $500 million. Micron Technologies, one of the country’s largest manufacturers of semiconductors and memory chips, is based in Boise.

13. Illinois
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $6.09 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): 46.9%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 8.9%

As in six other states, in Illinois, the value of petroleum exports surpasses that of all other goods shipped from the state to foreign nations. While a state’s largest export is not necessarily representative of its economy, Illinois’ crude oil refining capacity dominates the Midwest. Only Texas, Louisiana and California process more crude annually. Illinois refineries, including its largest — Wood River refinery — process domestic as well as foreign crude, primarily from Canada. Nearly a third of all the state’s export are destined for Canada.

14. Indiana
> Largest export:
Medication
> 2014 medication value: $4.31 billion
> Pct. change in medication export value (2013-2014): -12.4%
> Medication as share of total state exports: 12.1%

Like many U.S. states, Indiana’s primary export partner is Canada, which received just over one-third of the the state’s total exports, or roughly $12 billion of the state’s $35 billion in exports in 2014. Medication, the state’s most valuable export, accounted for $4.3 billion worth of products leaving the state to destinations abroad. This made the state the biggest exporter of medication by far in the country. Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly is headquartered in Indianapolis and is one of the largest employers in the state.

15. Iowa
> Largest export:
Corn
> 2014 corn value: $1.17 billion
> Pct. change in corn export value (2013-2014): 115.9%
> Corn as share of total state exports: 7.7%

Two-thirds of the states that export corn are located in the U.S. farm belt. After Louisiana and Washington, Iowa exports the most corn in the country. A large exporter of perishable food products, 7.0% of the Iowa’s export value comes from pork and another 2.4% comes from beef. Perhaps not surprising, a large share of the Iowa’s exports never travel very far. Slightly more than 30% of the state’s exports go to Canada and another 15.4% go to Mexico.

16. Kansas
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $2.06 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 13.2%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 17.2%

In Kansas, aircraft manufacturing employs more than 2.7% of the state’s working population. Aircraft and aircraft parts accounted for 17.2% of the total value of all the state’s exports. Kansas exported $2.06 billion worth of aircraft and aircraft parts in 2014. In 2002, Airbus, a French commercial jet manufacturer, opened its first North American design and engineering center in Wichita.

17. Kentucky
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $7.73 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 37.5%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 28.1%

Kentucky exported roughly $7.7 billion worth in aircraft and aircraft components to other parts of the world last year, more than the next 10 biggest product categories combined. Manufacturers such as Lockheed Martin have operations in the state. The state also ships large quantities of other goods it is more well-known for. Horses and whiskey are each among the top products in value that leave the state for destinations abroad.

18. Louisiana
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $24.99 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): -0.7%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 38.4%

With a total value of nearly $25 billion, petroleum is Louisiana’s most valuable export. With the exception of Texas, Louisiana exports more petroleum abroad than any other state. Accounting for slightly more than 26% of the state’s total export value in 2011, petroleum’s share of total exports jumped to 38.4% in 2014. British Petroleum, the company behind the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, has a distribution center just outside of Baton Rouge.

19. Maine
> Largest export:
Lobster
> 2014 lobster value: $0.35 billion
> Pct. change in lobster export value (2013-2014): 43.5%
> Lobster as share of total state exports: 12.7%

While some of the most valuable exports in each state are unusual, it should surprise few that Maine’ is the lobster. In 2014, Maine’s lobster industry hauled 124 million pounds of the crustacean, worth close to half a billion dollars. Of that catch, $349 million left the state for destinations abroad. That was a significant increase from the $243 million worth of lobster exported by the state in 2013. One reason for the increased value of the exports may have been the skyrocketing price of lobster, which rose by nearly 80 cents a pound from 2013 to 2014.

20. Maryland
> Largest export:
Cars and passenger vehicles
> 2014 cars and passenger vehicles value: $2.30 billion
> Pct. change in cars and passenger vehicles export value (2013-2014): -2.3%
> Cars and passenger vehicles as share of total state exports: 18.8%

Cars accounted for $2.3 billion out of the $12.2 billion in total Maryland exports in 2014. In 1963, the port of Baltimore received the first Volkswagen Beetle in the United States. Since then, the port in Maryland’s largest city has earned a reputation for being one of the nation’s top ports for automobiles. Baltimore harbor is the second largest port in the Mid-Atlantic.

21. Massachusetts
> Largest export:
Gold
> 2014 Gold value: $1.96 billion
> Pct. change in Gold export value (2013-2014): -18.7%
> Gold as share of total state exports: 7.2%

Massachusetts has no commercial gold mining operations to speak of, and yet the state exported nearly $2 billion of the precious metal last year, roughly double its next largest export. The reason the state ships so much gold abroad is that it also happens to be one of the biggest importers of the metal, which is refined at the Metalor refinery in North Attleborough and shipped abroad. More than half of this refined gold goes to the United Kingdom, with Switzerland and Hong Kong a distant second and third. The state has a relatively diverse economy, and while the gold leaving the state is worth a substantial sum, it only represented 7.2% of the state’s total exports in 2014.

22. Michigan
> Largest export:
Automobile Parts
> 2014 automobile parts value: $9.91 billion
> Pct. change in automobile parts export value (2013-2014): -6.2%
> Automobile parts as share of total state exports: 17.8%

Home to Detroit, the Motor City, it is no surprise that car parts are Michigan’s most valuable export. The state shipped nearly $10 billion in automotive parts abroad in 2014, a 17.8% share of the state’s total exports. Additionally, personal vehicles and commercial vehicle parts accounted for more than 20% of the state’s total export value. General Motors is headquartered in Detroit and reported $155.9 billion in net sales in its fiscal 2014.

23. Minnesota
> Largest export:
Medical needles
> 2014 medical needles value: $0.88 billion
> Pct. change in medical needles export value (2013-2014): 13.2%
> Medical needles as share of total state exports: 4.1%

Minnesota has a very diverse profile of exports, with no product type accounting for more than 5% of the value of products leaving the state for foreign shores. Products such as aircraft, circuitry, and automobiles account for substantial shares of the state’s exports. However, the state’s biggest export in 2014 was medical syringes and needles, with an export value of roughly $875 million, or 4.1% of the state’s total exports. With such global medical device companies as St. Jude Medical, Medtronic, and Boston Scientific, the state is the national leader in the manufacturing of medical devices.

24. Mississippi
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 Petroleum value: $3.84 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): -8.7%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 33.6%

Petroleum accounted for more than one-third of the value of Mississippi’s total exports. There are three operating oil refineries in the state, including the Chevron Pascagoula refinery, which is one of the nation’s largest. Selling more than $3.8 billion in petroleum abroad in 2014, Mississippi is one of three Gulf states where petroleum is the most valuable export.

25. Missouri
> Largest export:
Commercial vehicle parts
> 2014 commercial vehicle parts value: $1.44 billion
> Pct. change in commercial vehicle parts export value (2013-2014): 13.5%
> Commercial vehicle parts as share of total state exports: 10.2%

Growing to $1.4 billion in 2014 from $815 million in 2011, commercial vehicle parts accounted for 10.2% of Missouri’s total export value. No other Missouri export reached a value of more than $1 billion in 2014. The state’s economy relies heavily on automobile manufacturing with a Ford plant just outside of Kansas City and a GM plant just outside of St. Louis.

26. Montana
> Largest export:
Coal
> 2014 coal value: $223 million
> Pct. change in coal export value (2013-2014): 1.9%
> Coal as share of total state exports: 14.6%

Montana shipped $223 million worth of coal overseas last year — the state’s largest export as it was the previous three years. Montana is one of the nation’s largest producers of coal, and the largely Asia-bound coal exports accounted for roughly one-fourth of coal produced in the state. Another quarter was consumed in Montana, mainly to generate electricity. The remainder — about half — was shipped by rail to other states and therefore not counted as export.

27. Nebraska
> Largest export:
Beef
> 2014 beef value: $1.10 billion
> Pct. change in beef export value (2013-2014): 20.8%
> Beef as share of total state exports: 14.0%

Beef is Nebraska’s most valuable export, with more than a billion dollars worth of beef shipped abroad in 2014. Omaha Steaks, a multimillion dollar manufacturer and distributor of beef products is headquartered in, and named after, the state’s largest city. Cattle outnumber people in Nebraska by about 4.5 million, and hides are Nebraska’s second biggest export, accounting for nearly 8% of the state’s total export value.

28. Nevada
> Largest export:
Gold
> 2014 gold value: $2.84 billion
> Pct. change in gold export value (2013-2014): -27.2%
> Gold as share of total state exports: 36.9%

Mining is one of Nevada’s core industries. Though silver, copper, and iron are all mined in the state, gold is by far the most valuable export. Exceeding a value of $2.8 billion, gold accounted for more than a third of the state’s total value of exports in 2014. Gold ore mining employed over 11,000 people in Nevada last year.

29. New Hampshire
> Largest export:
Cell phones
> 2014 cell phones value: $0.50 billion
> Pct. change in cell phones export value (2013-2014): 180.1%
> Cell phones as share of total state exports: 11.4%

While the greatest export in the state usually is consistent year after year, there are exceptions. Cell phones only became New Hampshire’s largest export last year. In 2013, cell phones exports accounted for slightly more than 4% of the state’s total export value. By 2014, cell phones exports accounted for 11.4% of the state’s total export value, overtaking petroleum as the state’s largest export.

30. New Jersey
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $3.32 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): -18.5%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 9.0%

Because of New Jersey’s geographic location — access to the Delaware River and the New York Harbor — it has become home to the largest petroleum product hub in the Northeast. Though the state does not produce any crude oil, it has three operating oil refineries that produce gasoline, diesel, and heating oil. While the value of petroleum exports has declined since a recent high of nearly $6 billion in 2012, petroleum is still the state’s most valuable export, worth about $3.3 billion in 2014.

31. New Mexico
> Largest export:
Processors
> 2014 processors value: $0.84 billion
> Pct. change in processors export value (2013-2014): 6.0%
> Processors as share of total state exports: 22.1%

In 2012, New Mexico exported more than a billion dollars worth of processors. Back then, processors accounted for over 43% of the state’s total export value. Last year, New Mexico only exported $837 million worth of processors, only a 22.1% share of the state’s total export value. Despite the decline in value, processors are still the state’s most valuable export — just as they were in 2012. Intel, one of the largest manufacturers of computer chips, is the largest industrial employer in New Mexico with a facility in Rio Rancho that employs over 2,000 people.

32. New York
> Largest export:
Diamonds
> 2014 diamonds value: $14.77 billion
> Pct. change in diamonds export value (2013-2014): 15.0%
> Diamonds as share of total state exports: 17.2%

Diamonds accounted for the largest share of New York’s exports in 2014. With a total export value of nearly $14.8 billion last year, New York exported more diamonds than any other state. The Diamond District, located in midtown Manhattan, serves as a base of operations for about 2,600 independent businesses in the diamond trade. In addition to exporting billions of dollars in diamonds, the precious gem is also a major state import. More than 90% of the diamonds that come in to the country pass through New York City.

33. North Carolina
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $1.41 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 33.2%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 4.5%

Since the Wright Brothers’ first successful airplane flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903, aviation has remained central to the state’s identity. Over 100 years since the Wright Brothers made history, aircraft and aircraft parts are the most valuable export of the “First in Flight” state. With a plant in Kinston, Spirit Aerosystems manufactures parts for some of the biggest companies in the industry, including Boeing, Airbus, and Sikorsky.

34. North Dakota
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $2.46 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): 167.8%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 46.4%

Petroleum accounted for nearly half of the total value of North Dakota’s exports last year. In recent years, North Dakota has been experiencing an energy boom due to hydraulic fracturing of shale in Williston Basin. In 2012, North Dakota became the second largest petroleum-producing state after Texas. Considering its proximity to Canada, it is no surprise that more than three-quarters of the state’s exports go to its neighbor to the north.

35. Ohio
> Largest export:
Cars and passenger vehicles
> 2014 cars and passenger vehicles value: $4.47 billion
> Pct. change in cars and passenger vehicles export value (2013-2014): 9.5%
> Cars and passenger vehicles as share of total state exports: 8.6%

Several major automotive brands have facilities in Ohio. Jeep has a major Wrangler assembly plant in Toledo; Honda has a manufacturing plant in Marysville; and Ford has an assembly plant in Avon Lake. With a value of nearly $4.5 billion, cars and passenger vehicles accounted for 8.6% of Ohio’s total exports in 2014. Airplanes and airplane parts are a close second, claiming an 8.4% share of the state’s total export value.

36. Oklahoma
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $0.38 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): -35.4%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 6.1%

Aircraft and aircraft parts accounted for slightly more than 6% of Oklahoma’s total exports, making it the state’s most valuable export. The state sent close to $385 million worth of aircraft and parts to foreign shores in 2014, down from nearly $600 million in 2013. Canada receives the largest share of the state’s total exports.

37. Oregon
> Largest export:
Processors
> 2014 processors value: $4.65 billion
> Pct. change in processors export value (2013-2014): 21.5%
> Processors as share of total state exports: 22.2%

Oregon’s semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing industry employs roughly 2% of the state’s workforce, more than any other industry. The industry is also the source of the state’s largest export, computer processors. Last year, $4.7 billion worth was shipped overseas from the state, accounting for 22.2% of all of Oregon’s exports. Malaysia imported nearly $2.5 billion worth of processors and other computer components from Oregon, more than China, the state’s next largest trade partner for these products.

38. Pennsylvania
> Largest export:
Coal
> 2014 coal value: $1.58 billion
> Pct. change in coal export value (2013-2014): -21.0%
> Coal as share of total state exports: 3.9%

Between natural gas from hydraulic fracturing and coal mining, energy resources contributed nearly 7% to Pennsylvania’s exports. Pennsylvania exported nearly $1.6 billion worth of coal alone in 2014, the state’s largest exports. Home to the coal rich Appalachian Mountains, Pennsylvania is one of the largest coal-producing states in the country. Coal mining has been a fundamental component in Pennsylvania’s economy for more than 200 years.

39. Rhode Island
> Largest export:
Iron waste and scrap
> 2014 iron waste and scrap value: $0.29 billion
> Pct. change in iron waste and scrap export value (2013-2014): 33.5%
> Iron waste and scrap as share of total state exports: 12.1%

Shipping nearly $300 million worth of scrap metal abroad, iron waste and other scrap metal was Rhode Island’s most valuable export in 2014. The smallest state in the country geographically, Rhode Island does not have the abundance of resources that many other states do. Iron waste and scrap metal most commonly comes from recycled vehicles, appliances, steel containers, and construction materials.

40. South Carolina
> Largest export:
Cars and passenger vehicles
> 2014 cars and passenger vehicles value: $9.11 billion
> Pct. change in cars and passenger vehicles export value (2013-2014): 20.9%
> Cars and passenger vehicles as share of total state exports: 30.7%

Cars and passenger vehicles are far and away South Carolina’s largest export, valued at more than $9 billion and accounting for 30.7% of all of the state’s exports in 2014. Germany, the largest national importer of transportation equipment from South Carolina, imported $3.3 billion worth of vehicles and parts from the state in 2014. China, however, imported 14.2% of all goods exported from South Carolina, the largest share.

41. South Dakota
> Largest export:
Pork
> 2014 pork value: $0.20 billion
> Pct. change in pork export value (2013-2014): 12.3%
> Pork as share of total state exports: 12.4%

South Dakota exported close to $200 million worth of pork in 2014, or 12.4% of the state’s total exports. State farmers raise an estimated 1.4 million hogs each year. The state also ships a great deal of soybean byproducts abroad. There is a major processing plant in Volga where oil and meal is processed. Close to 4 million acres of soybeans are grown in the state each year.

42. Tennessee
> Largest export:
Cars and passenger vehicles
> 2014 cars and passenger vehicles value: $2.64 billion
> Pct. change in cars and passenger vehicles export value (2013-2014): 23.8%
> Cars and passenger vehicles as share of total state exports: 8.0%

Cars and passenger vehicles overtook medical instruments as Tennessee’s most valuable export in 2014. Both Volkswagen and General Motors have production hubs in Tennessee. Additionally, Nissan’s North American headquarters is located in Franklin, along with a plant in Smyrna. More than 6% of U.S.-made cars are put together in Tennessee. Medical instruments exports were worth $2.1 billion, accounting for 6.5% of the state’s total exports.

43. Texas
> Largest export:
Petroleum
> 2014 petroleum value: $64.15 billion
> Pct. change in petroleum export value (2013-2014): 7.0%
> Petroleum as share of total state exports: 22.2%

Texas exported in 2014 more than $64 billion worth of petroleum, the state’s most valuable export. No other state single product export was nearly as valuable, with Washington’s exports of airplanes — the second most valuable export in the country — worth $15.5 billion less. Texas is one of three Gulf states where petroleum is the most valuable export. Exxonmobil’s corporate headquarter is located in Irving, and British Petroleum operates more than 850 oil wells in east Texas alone.

44. Utah
> Largest export:
Gold
> 2014 gold value: $3.76 billion
> Pct. change in gold export value (2013-2014): -53.5%
> Gold as share of total state exports: 30.6%

Though the total value of gold shipped abroad from the state declined by more than 50% from 2013 to 2014, it was still Utah’s most valuable export in 2014 worth more than $3.7 billion. This was more than double the state’s second most valuable export, memory chips, which were worth $1.3 billion. Utah has a long history of gold mining. The precious metal was first discovered in the state in 1858.

45. Vermont
> Largest export:
Processors
> 2014 processors value: $1.39 billion
> Pct. change in processors export value (2013-2014): -0.6%
> Processors as share of total state exports: 38.3%

While some might expect products such as cheese, maple syrup or ice cream to top the list of Vermont’s most valuable exports, the distinction goes to computer processors. In fact, processors, circuits, and computer parts together accounted for more than 60% of all exports from Vermont. Essex Junction is home to GlobalFoundries’ computer part manufacturing plant. The operation, formerly owned IBM, employs around 3,000 area residents.

46. Virginia
> Largest export:
Soybeans
> 2014 soybeans value: $0.79 billion
> Pct. change in soybeans export value (2013-2014): 9.3%
> Soybeans as share of total state exports: 4.1%

Soybean exports accounted for more of Virginia’s total export value than any other resource or product. The state exported $790 million worth of soybeans in 2014, slightly more than the $780 million worth of the state’s second most valuable export, memory chips. Soybean meal accounted for another 1.6% of the state’s total export value, and another 0.8% came from soybean oil.

47. Washington
> Largest export:
Aircraft and aircraft parts
> 2014 aircraft and aircraft parts value: $48.69 billion
> Pct. change in aircraft and aircraft parts export value (2013-2014): 13.0%
> Aircraft and aircraft parts as share of total state exports: 53.7%

Once home to the headquarters of Boeing, the company has since moved its base of operations to Chicago. Still, employing around 80,000 people, Boeing, is the largest private employer in Washington state. It is perhaps no surprise Washington’s largest exports are aircrafts and aircraft parts — state exports of aircraft-related goods were valued at $48.7 billion in 2014.

48. West Virginia
> Largest export:
Coal
> 2014 coal value: $3.11 billion
> Pct. change in coal export value (2013-2014): -31.5%
> Coal as share of total state exports: 41.5%

Found in 53 of the state’s 55 counties, coal is one of West Virginia’s most abundant resources. With the exception of Wyoming, no state produces more coal than West Virginia. Though about a fifth of all the coal mined in West Virginia never leaves the state, coal is still the state’s most valuable export, accounting for more than 40% of the state’s collective value of exports.

49. Wisconsin
> Largest export:
Tractors
> 2014 tractors value: $378 million
> Pct. change in tractors export value (2013-2014): 24.2%
> Tractors as share of total state exports: 1.6%

A state’s largest export need not be produced in the state. However, as in many other states, Wisconsin’s machinery manufacturing industries were both major employers and the source of the state’s largest export. In the case of Wisconsin, where agriculture machinery manufacturing accounts for more than 13,000 jobs, the largest export is tractors. A state’s largest export does not typically change from year to year. In Wisconsin, however, tractors surpassed drilling machinery for the first time last year.

50. Wyoming
> Largest export:
Disodium carbonate
> 2014 disodium carbonate value: $0.89 billion
> Pct. change in disodium carbonate export value (2013-2014): 7.8%
> Disodium carbonate as share of total state exports: 50.7%

Disodium carbonate accounts for more than half of Wyoming’s total export value. Also known as trona, disodium carbonate is a mineral commonly processed and turned into baking soda. Wyoming has the the world’s largest trona deposit. More than 17 million tons of trona were mined in the state in 2014, and the state exported $890 million worth that year. In 1967, Church & Dwight, the company behind Arm & Hammer baking soda, opened a plant in Green River to take advantage of the area’s mineral resources.

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