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While the EU saw a drop in toy exports, China was the EU’s biggest supplier, providing 80% of these imports, valued at €5.2 billion.
In 2023, the EU imported €6.5 billion worth of toys from countries outside the bloc, a €2 billion decrease compared to 2022. According to the latest Eurostat figures, China was the EU’s biggest supplier, providing 80% of these imports, valued at €5.2 billion. Vietnam followed with 6% and the United Kingdom with 2%. Around a fifth of the EU’s toy imports ended up in Germany, while France and the Netherlands received 16% and 14%, respectively. At the same time, the EU exported €2.3 billion worth of toys in 2023. This figure represents a slight decrease of €0.2 billion from the previous year. More than half of the toys exported from the EU came from the Czech Republic, Germany and Belgium. The UK was the top destination for EU toy exports, receiving 30% of the total, followed by Switzerland at 13% and the United States at 10%. Concerns over toy safetyA recent Toy Industries of Europe study revealed that 80% of toys purchased from third-party sellers on online marketplaces failed to meet EU safety standards. The research tested over 100 toys from various platforms, uncovering serious health risks such as choking hazards and toxic chemicals. At the beginning of September, the European Parliament backed a proposal to improve the safety of toys available on the EU market. The proposal focused particularly on decreasing the number of unsafe toys in the EU market and better protecting children from toy-related risks, including banning harmful chemicals in toys.
