Earlier today, I'd received the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) press release, Minnesota Exports Declined 6% to $6.3 Billion in First Quarter:
St. Paul, MN - Minnesota exports of goods declined to $6.3 billion in the first quarter 2025, slipping 6% compared to the first quarter of 2024, according to data released by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). While overall U.S. exports grew a modest 3% during this period, Minnesota was among 20 states nationwide – and eight of the 12 Midwest states – that saw declines or near zero growth in exports.
"On-again, off-again tariffs issued unilaterally by the Trump Administration continue to cause significant uncertainty and concern for Minnesota companies in planning their business strategies, including importing and exporting. This quarter, Minnesota saw exports fall to Canada and Mexico, illustrating the risks posed to our state if the federal government wages a trade fight with our two biggest trading partners," said DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek. "We are closely tracking these developments and working with our business community to attempt to manage the impact of tariffs and potential countermeasures from our trading partners."
Category performance
Global sales for eight of Minnesota's top 10 exported products fell in the first quarter, led by vehicles (down 25%), cereals (down 63%, including corn and wheat) and optic, medical goods (down 5%). However, strong performances by mineral fuels, oils (up 4%) and plastics (up 4%), as well as dairy, eggs, honey (up 85%, driven by eggs) and oil seeds, misc. grain (up 36%, driven by soybeans), helped support the state's exports.
Geographic performance
North American exports dropped ($2.8 billion, down 7%), as sales slumped to Minnesota's top two export markets, Canada (down 3%) and Mexico (down 16%). Increased demand for Minnesota goods in the Middle East (up 12%) and in European markets outside the EU (up 17%) partially offset overall sharp declines in demand from Asia, the EU markets overall (down 5%) and Australia (down 31%).
"Amid the ongoing changes in federal economic policies and foreign countermeasures, we want to assure Minnesota companies and our global trade partners that Minnesota is open for business," said Minnesota Trade Office (MTO) Executive Director Gabrielle Gerbaud. "MTO continues to focus on pursuing international growth opportunities and helping Minnesota companies expand their reach and make new connections in foreign markets."
The full first quarter 2025 report is available on DEED's website in the Export and Trade Statistics section.
As a transplant to South Dakota, that news got me wondering how my new state was doing.
Fortunately, Madison McVan answered that question in the Minnesota Reformer news brief republished below.
Minnesota exports down 6% from this time last year
by Madison McVanPresident Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs mean international buyers are purchasing fewer Minnesota products.
First quarter exports are down 6% compared to the first quarter of 2024 — and the quarter ended before Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcement, which raised the effective tax on imports to 27%, before courts intervened and Trump reversed or paused some of the taxes.
Minnesota exports have been hit harder than the country as a whole; nationally, exports were up 3% compared to this time last year.
Trump’s tariffs have prompted retaliation from two of Minnesota’s biggest trade partners: Canada and China, which imposed taxes on goods purchased from the U.S.
Mexico, Minnesota’s second-biggest trade partner, has largely avoided major tariffs and has not retaliated with new import taxes of its own.
Exports from Minnesota to Mexico, however, have dropped 16%, as the country buys fewer Minnesota-produced vehicles, machines, food byproducts, cereals and iron. Exports to Canada, the state’s biggest buyer, are down 3%.
“On-again, off-again tariffs issued unilaterally by the Trump Administration continue to cause significant uncertainty and concern for Minnesota companies in planning their business strategies, including importing and exporting,” DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek said in a press release.
The effects of tariffs and economic uncertainty are distributed unevenly across states and industries; in nearby Wisconsin, exports have increased 2% compared to the first quarter of 2024. North Dakota’s exports are up 5%, while South Dakota’s are down 11%.
In Minnesota, sellers of vehicles, food byproducts and air and spacecraft have suffered the biggest losses in international markets; for those industries, international sales have dropped by around one-quarter.
Photo: Couldn't use the Getty Image that accompanied the Reformer article, so here's 2025 SD export former SD Governor Kristi Noem. Having appointed her DHS Secretary, the Trump Administration has exported cosplaying ICE Barbie to all sorts of stages, fortunately out of the State of South Dakota. However, didn't count as an export. Source: Governor Kristi Noem rides, with American flag in hand, into the Cinch Playoffs Governor’s Cup rodeo in Sioux Falls in September 2023. (Courtesy of Governor’s Office). South Dakota Searchlight.
The Minnesota Reformer news brief is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
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