Of the world's major trading partners, the U.S. is the only country whose share of exports from Least Developed Countries has increased from 1996 to 2001.

• For manufactured goods, the U.S. share of Least Developed Country exports increased by approximately 13 percent, while the European Union's share dropped by nearly 7 percent.
• The U.S. share of Least Developed Country apparel exports rose by more than 10 percent, while the European Union.s share plunged by approximately 9.5 percent.

The U.S. also leads in average annual import growth from Least Developed Countries with 11.5 percent growth in all sectors from 1996 to 2001, compared to 5 percent growth by the European Union.

• The U.S. is the top importer of goods from developing countries, importing $449 billion in 2001, nearly nine times more than all Official Development Assistance (ODA) to developing countries from all donors.