In the early years of the 21st century, trade between Ukraine and Poland showed steady growth. Although the increase may seem modest in absolute terms, the growth rate was quite significant. For example, from 2001 to 2008, the volume of Ukrainian exports to Poland increased more than 4.5-fold - from $0.5 billion to $2.3 billion. Polish exports to Ukraine grew even faster during the same period - by more than 8.5 times, from $0.5 billion to $4.3 billion. This was reported by Dengi.ua, citing an infographic by Slovo i Dilo (available here).
The global financial crisis that erupted in late 2008 had a significant impact on bilateral trade. As early as 2009, the volume of imports from Poland nearly halved - from $4.3 billion to $2.2 billion. A similar decline occurred with Ukrainian exports, which fell from $2.3 billion to $1.2 billion.
It took several years to return to pre-crisis levels. Ukrainian exports to Poland recovered to their previous level as early as 2011, reaching $2.8 billion. Polish exports to Ukraine did not approach 2008 levels until 2013, when they totaled $4.1 billion.
After Russia’s aggression against Ukraine began, trade faced another downturn. In 2014, following the occupation of Crimea and the outbreak of hostilities in eastern Ukraine, imports of Polish goods fell to $3.1 billion. At the same time, Ukrainian exports to Poland declined significantly a year later - from $2.6 billion in 2014 to $2 billion in 2015.
Starting in 2016, against the backdrop of deepening economic cooperation and Ukraine’s European integration, bilateral trade began to grow again. Over the next four years, trade volumes remained relatively stable: Ukrainian exports to Poland peaked at $3.3 billion, while imports of Polish goods reached about $4.1 billion.
Even the COVID-19 pandemic did not halt this positive trend. Trade volume continued to grow, and following the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, trade ties received an additional boost due to the reorientation of Ukraine’s foreign trade.
In 2021 and 2022, Ukraine recorded a trade surplus with Poland for the first time during the period under review.In 2021, exports reached $5.2 billion, with imports at $5 billion, and in 2022, Ukrainian exports rose to $6.7 billion, while imports totaled $5.6 billion. In all other years, Ukraine’s trade balance ran a deficit.
In 2023–2024, the volume of Ukrainian exports to Poland declined, partly due to export restrictions on domestic agricultural products. At the same time, imports of Polish goods continued to increase. By the end of 2025, Ukraine’s exports to Poland totaled $5.1 billion, while imports from Poland reached $8 billion.