{"id":1354409,"name":"Trade volume index","unit":"index 1800=1","createdAt":"2026-10-23T09:56:02.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-23T09:56:02.000Z","coverage":"","timespan":"1800-2025","datasetId":8239,"shortUnit":"","columnOrder":0,"shortName":"volume_index","catalogPath":"grapher/trade/2026-10-22/wto_trade_growth/wto_trade_growth#volume_index","descriptionShort":"World trade index, based on the volume of goods traded between countries, adjusted for price changes (1800 = 1).","descriptionProcessing":"We combined historical trade data from Federico and Tena-Junguito (2019) (up to 1950) with World Trade Organization (WTO) data (after 1950). We re-indexed the Federico and Tena-Junguito series, originally expressed relative to 1913 = 100, so that 1800 = 1. We then rescaled the WTO index, originally set to 1950 = 100, using the 1950 overlap to align it with this 1800 = 1 scale. This ensures both series are presented consistently on the same baseline.","type":"float","datasetName":"Evolution of trade under the WTO: handy statistics","updatePeriodDays":365,"datasetVersion":"2026-10-22","nonRedistributable":false,"display":{"name":"Trade volume index","unit":"index 1800=1","tolerance":0,"numDecimalPlaces":1},"schemaVersion":2,"processingLevel":"major","presentation":{"attributionShort":"Federico and Tena-Junguito; WTO","topicTagsLinks":["Trade & Globalization"]},"descriptionKey":"- One of the defining developments of the past two centuries has been the increasing integration of national economies into a single global system. This indicator illustrates the expansion of trade and the growing interconnectedness of the world economy since 1800.\n- It shows the volume of world trade, measuring the goods exchanged across national borders at constant prices, so that changes in prices don’t distort comparisons over time. The series is expressed as an index relative to a baseline year (here, 1800 = 1).\n- The historical component is based on [Federico and Tena-Junguito (2019)](https://doi.org/10.1017/S0212610918000216), who compiled trade statistics from hundreds of historical sources, covering the main trading economies from 1800 and almost every country and colony from 1850, up to 1938, adjusting all estimates to 1913 borders. They measure world trade as the sum of all exports at constant prices, and link their series to United Nations trade statistics for 1950. There are no estimates for 1939–1949. Their original index was expressed relative to 1913 = 100; here, we have re-indexed it so that 1800 = 1.\n- Because definitions varied, the researchers standardized the historical data to modern UN conventions: smuggling, re-exports, transit trade, and bullion were excluded; fiscal years were aligned with calendar years; imports were valued including freight, and exports excluding it. Researchers used detailed price indexes to correct for inflation and shipping costs.\n- After 1950, we extend the series using World Trade Organization (WTO) data on the volume of world merchandise trade, calculated as the average of exports and imports. The WTO index was originally set to 1950 = 100, and we rescaled it to align with the historical series so that all data are expressed on the same 1800 = 1 scale. This allows us to present a consistent long-run view of world trade growth from 1800 to the present.","dimensions":{"years":{"values":[{"id":1800},{"id":1801},{"id":1802},{"id":1803},{"id":1804},{"id":1805},{"id":1806},{"id":1807},{"id":1808},{"id":1809},{"id":1810},{"id":1811},{"id":1812},{"id":1813},{"id":1814},{"id":1815},{"id":1816},{"id":1817},{"id":1818},{"id":1819},{"id":1820},{"id":1821},{"id":1822},{"id":1823},{"id":1824},{"id":1825},{"id":1826},{"id":1827},{"id":1828},{"id":1829},{"id":1830},{"id":1831},{"id":1832},{"id":1833},{"id":1834},{"id":1835},{"id":1836},{"id":1837},{"id":1838},{"id":1839},{"id":1840},{"id":1841},{"id":1842},{"id":1843},{"id":1844},{"id":1845},{"id":1846},{"id":1847},{"id":1848},{"id":1849},{"id":1850},{"id":1851},{"id":1852},{"id":1853},{"id":1854},{"id":1855},{"id":1856},{"id":1857},{"id":1858},{"id":1859},{"id":1860},{"id":1861},{"id":1862},{"id":1863},{"id":1864},{"id":1865},{"id":1866},{"id":1867},{"id":1868},{"id":1869},{"id":1870},{"id":1871},{"id":1872},{"id":1873},{"id":1874},{"id":1875},{"id":1876},{"id":1877},{"id":1878},{"id":1879},{"id":1880},{"id":1881},{"id":1882},{"id":1883},{"id":1884},{"id":1885},{"id":1886},{"id":1887},{"id":1888},{"id":1889},{"id":1890},{"id":1891},{"id":1892},{"id":1893},{"id":1894},{"id":1895},{"id":1896},{"id":1897},{"id":1898},{"id":1899},{"id":1900},{"id":1901},{"id":1902},{"id":1903},{"id":1904},{"id":1905},{"id":1906},{"id":1907},{"id":1908},{"id":1909},{"id":1910},{"id":1911},{"id":1912},{"id":1913},{"id":1914},{"id":1915},{"id":1916},{"id":1917},{"id":1918},{"id":1919},{"id":1920},{"id":1921},{"id":1922},{"id":1923},{"id":1924},{"id":1925},{"id":1926},{"id":1927},{"id":1928},{"id":1929},{"id":1930},{"id":1931},{"id":1932},{"id":1933},{"id":1934},{"id":1935},{"id":1936},{"id":1937},{"id":1938},{"id":1950},{"id":1951},{"id":1952},{"id":1953},{"id":1954},{"id":1955},{"id":1956},{"id":1957},{"id":1958},{"id":1959},{"id":1960},{"id":1961},{"id":1962},{"id":1963},{"id":1964},{"id":1965},{"id":1966},{"id":1967},{"id":1968},{"id":1969},{"id":1970},{"id":1971},{"id":1972},{"id":1973},{"id":1974},{"id":1975},{"id":1976},{"id":1977},{"id":1978},{"id":1979},{"id":1980},{"id":1981},{"id":1982},{"id":1983},{"id":1984},{"id":1985},{"id":1986},{"id":1987},{"id":1988},{"id":1989},{"id":1990},{"id":1991},{"id":1992},{"id":1993},{"id":1994},{"id":1995},{"id":1996},{"id":1997},{"id":1998},{"id":1999},{"id":2000},{"id":2001},{"id":2002},{"id":2003},{"id":2004},{"id":2005},{"id":2006},{"id":2007},{"id":2008},{"id":2009},{"id":2010},{"id":2011},{"id":2012},{"id":2013},{"id":2014},{"id":2015},{"id":2016},{"id":2017},{"id":2018},{"id":2019},{"id":2020},{"id":2021},{"id":2022},{"id":2023},{"id":2024},{"id":2025}]},"entities":{"values":[{"id":355,"name":"World","code":"OWID_WRL"}]}},"origins":[{"id":28232,"title":"Evolution of trade under the WTO: handy statistics","description":"Evolution of trade under the WTO: handy statistics is a page of summary statistics on how world trade has grown since 1950. It includes the volume of world merchandise trade each year, both as annual growth and as an index with 1950 = 100. Trade is calculated as average of exports and imports, and excludes significant re-exports or imports for re-exports.","producer":"World Trade Organization","citationFull":"World Trade Organization. Evolution of trade under the WTO: handy statistics. Retrieved from https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/statis_e/trade_evolution_e/evolution_trade_wto_e.htm (Accessed: 22 October 2026).","urlMain":"https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/statis_e/trade_evolution_e/evolution_trade_wto_e.htm","urlDownload":"https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/statis_e/trade_evolution_e/world_trade_growth.xlsx","dateAccessed":"2026-10-22","datePublished":"2026-10-08","license":{"url":"https://www.wto.org/english/info_e/copyrights_permissions_e.htm","name":"© World Trade Organization"}},{"id":28233,"title":"Federico-Tena World Trade Historical Database","description":"The Federico-Tena World Trade Historical Database reports the imports and exports of almost every country and colony from 1800 to 1938, at current and constant prices, and within both their borders at the time and their 1913 borders. Its world trade index measures the volume of world trade as the sum of all countries’ exports at constant prices.","producer":"Federico and Tena-Junguito","citationFull":"Federico, G., & Tena-Junguito, A. (2019). World trade, 1800-1938: A new synthesis. Revista de Historia Económica / Journal of Iberian and Latin American Economic History, 37(1), 9–41. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0212610918000216","urlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1017/S0212610918000216","dateAccessed":"2025-09-22","datePublished":"2019-03-15","license":{"url":"https://edatos.consorciomadrono.es/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi:10.21950/JKZFDP","name":"CC BY 4.0"}}]}