| Table 6.1 Small and medium enterprises by exports and number of enterprises 2015-2017 | ||||||
| €million | ||||||
| Enterprise size | Export value | Number of enterprises | ||||
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | |
| Agri/food | 3,012 | 2,858 | 3,145 | 591 | 628 | 623 |
| Pharmaceuticals | 8,302 | 8,571 | 6,952 | 155 | 157 | 168 |
| Other manufacturing and construction | 9,678 | 9,587 | 10,038 | 2,078 | 2,104 | 2,039 |
| Wholesale/retail | 7,422 | 7,192 | 6,420 | 3,702 | 3,763 | 3,728 |
| Services/other | 7,892 | 8,505 | 9,403 | 1,737 | 1,737 | 1,742 |
| Total | 36,307 | 36,713 | 35,957 | 8,263 | 8,389 | 8,300 |
Small and medium enterprises
Small and medium enterprises are defined as those with less than 250 employees. There were 8,300 SMEs exporting goods in 2017, with a total value of €36 billion. The other manufacturing and construction sector was the largest, accounting for €10 billion, or 28% of all exports by SMEs. The wholesale and retail sector had the largest number of enterprises exporting. There were 3,728, or 45% of all exporting SMEs in this sector.
Over 31,000 SMEs imported €53.6 billion of goods in 2017. This is an increase of over €9.6 billion, or 22% on the 2015 level. The services sector accounted for over €23 billion of imports in 2017, although it should be noted that this includes aircraft leasing. Almost half of all SMEs importing in 2017 were in the wholesale and retail sector. Almost 15,000 enterprises in this sector imported over €20 billion of goods in 2017.
| Table 6.2 Small and medium enterprises by imports and number of enterprises 2015-2017 | ||||||
| €million | ||||||
| Enterprise size | Import value | Number of enterprises | ||||
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | |
| Agri/food | 1,416 | 1,357 | 1,557 | 1,419 | 1,589 | 1,646 |
| Pharmaceuticals | 2,078 | 1,669 | 1,530 | 202 | 206 | 205 |
| Other manufacturing and construction | 6,371 | 6,119 | 6,723 | 6,129 | 6,561 | 6,887 |
| Wholesale/retail | 19,143 | 18,986 | 20,422 | 14,672 | 14,811 | 14,958 |
| Services/other | 14,957 | 18,062 | 23,339 | 6,700 | 7,085 | 7,351 |
| Total | 43,965 | 46,193 | 53,571 | 29,122 | 30,252 | 31,047 |
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