A resource-rich country, Burma is strategically located in Southeast Asia between India and China, with ports on the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea of the Indian Ocean. Following the COVID-19 pandemic and the February 1, 2021, coup, Burma experienced an 18 percent contraction in GDP in 2021. According to the World Bank’s June Myanmar Economic Monitor, GDP is expected to rise by three percent in the fiscal year ending September 2023. Household incomes remain low as economic and job insecurity is mounting in tandem with Myanmar’s autarkic trade policies. 

Burma’s economy stabilized in the first half of 2023, but businesses continue to face numerous challenges, from securing import permits to currency exchange.  Business operations, especially those of American companies dependent on Internet Service Providers, have been severely hampered by the suspension of the internet and telecommunications across the country.

In reaction to the coup, the United States has suspended the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement since March 2021. Burma has border trade agreements with Bangladesh, India, China, Laos, and Thailand. According to the feedback from the local business community, in FY 2022–2023, around eighty percent of Burma’s trade was carried out through border crossings, mostly the Myawaddy–Mae Sot border, using both legal and illicit methods.

Myanmar or Burma – Which Name to Use?

The official name of the country is the “Republic of the Union of Myanmar,” according to the 2008 constitution. While either name can be used to refer to the country, military regime authorities only use Myanmar, and that name is featured on all official letters and documents. “Myanmar” is the name used by international bodies, including commercial standard setting bodies to which Myanmar still belongs, including the International Maritime Organization (IMO), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), among others.  The United States government continues to refer to the country as “Burma.”   

U.S.–Burma Trade

Following the February 2021 coup, U.S.–Burma trade declined significantly. According to the regime’s Ministry of Commerce, the country imported $692 million in goods and exported $174 million, for $866 million in total trade for fiscal year 2022-2023. 

In response to the coup, the U.S. government has imposed a series of targeted sanctions, implemented export restrictions on jet fuel and specific aircraft supplies to Burma’s military, and limited diplomatic engagement with the State Administration Council (SAC). Detailed information is in the Customs and Regulations chapter. 

2023 (as of June): U.S. trade in goods with Burma (Reference: United States Census Bureau)

NOTE: All figures are in millions of U.S. dollars on a nominal basis, not seasonally adjusted unless otherwise specified. Details may not equal totals due to rounding. Table reflects only those months for which there was trade.

2022: U.S. trade in goods with Burma (Reference: United States Census Bureau)

NOTE: All figures are in millions of U.S. dollars on a nominal basis, not seasonally adjusted unless otherwise specified. Details may not equal totals due to rounding. Table reflects only those months for which there was trade.

2021: U.S. trade in goods with Burma (Reference: United States Census Bureau)

NOTE: All figures are in millions of U.S. dollars on a nominal basis, not seasonally adjusted unless otherwise specified.  Details may not equal totals due to rounding. Table reflects only those months for which there was trade.

Political Environment

For background information on the political and economic environment of the country, please see:  https://www.state.gov/countries-areas/burma/.