Scotland's Top Exports to the US: Whisky, Petroleum, Machinery, Food & Textiles

The United States is Scotland’s largest single-country export destination (rest of UK combined is larger). 2023/24 key sectors:

1. Scotch Whisky — £1.1B+ ($1.4B+)

• ~40% of all Scotch exports by value.
• Single malts (Speyside, Islay, Highland) + blends. Tariff-free under US-UK trade continuity.

2. Petroleum & Petroleum Products — ~£1B

• Crude oil (North Sea), refined products, chemical feedstocks.
• Grangemouth refinery (INEOS) — critical hub.

3. Machinery & Equipment — ~£500M

• Oil & gas tech (subsea, drilling), renewables (offshore wind), precision engineering, medical devices.

4. Food & Drink (Excl. Whisky) — ~£400M

• Seafood (salmon, langoustines, scallops), beef, lamb, dairy, shortbread, craft beer, gin.

5. Textiles & Apparel — ~£300M

• Cashmere, wool (Harris Tweed, Borders), high-end knitwear, technical textiles.

Emerging & Niche

• Life Sciences: Biotech, pharma, diagnostics (Edinburgh/Glasgow clusters).
• Digital/Creative: Gaming (Rockstar North), fintech, AI.
• Education Services: Transnational education, research partnerships.

Trade Context

• US-UK Trade & Investment Working Group (post-Brexit) — aiming for FTA.
• Scotch whisky 25% tariff (Airbus-Boeing dispute) suspended 2021 — critical win.
• Services (finance, legal, consulting) = huge invisible export not in goods data.

Scotland’s US export profile = high-value, branded, resource/knowledge-intensive. Whisky remains the iconic anchor.