Merchandise exports as a share of GDP in select European countries 1950-1998

Over the late 20th century, European integration became fundamental to Western Europe's economic growth. Developed nations overtook developing economies as the most common destination for European products, and in Germany alone the share of exports going to the EU and U.S. rose from 23 percent in 1961 to 62 percent in 1990. In terms of contributions to GDP, the Netherlands saw the largest share of its GDP come from exports in each of the given years; in 1973, Dutch exports were responsible for approximately 41 percent of GDP, which was almost four times the global average.

在20世纪后期，欧洲一体化对西欧的经济增长起到了根本性的作用。发达经济体超过了发展中经济体，成为欧洲产品出口的最主要目的地。仅以德国为例，其对欧盟和美国的出口份额从1961年的23%上升至1990年的62%。在贡献于国内生产总值（GDP）方面，荷兰在其所考察的每一年中，其GDP的最大份额均来自出口；在1973年，荷兰的出口对GDP的贡献约为41%，这一比例是全球平均水平的近四倍。