Global Trade in Fakes: A Worrying Threat

The EU Intellectual Property Office and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published their updated report on the trade in counterfeit and pirated products. The report looks at the magnitude, value, scope and trends of global trade in counterfeit and pirated goods, also known as fakes.

Using a unique enforcement dataset and tailored methodology, the report estimates the overall scale of the threat of counterfeit goods and outlines which industries are particularly at risk. It also gauges the main economies of origin of fakes in global trade, the key directions of trade flows and analyses recent trends in terms of modes of shipment and the evolution of trade routes.

Phil Lewis Director General of the Anti-Counterfeiting Group commented on the findings of the report "Despite the disruption to international supply chains over the past year, due to the pandemic, the global trade in fakes was found to be worth $464 billion USD (£332 billion), which is equivalent to the GDP of Belgium. The figures also reveal that counterfeiting represents 2.5% of world trade and 6% of imports across Europe.

"Unfortunately, despite a noticeable drop, China and Hong Kong are still the main sources of counterfeit goods, accounting for 77% of all seizures. However, Turkey is a growing concern, with its share of global seizures tripling from 4% to 12%.

"What’s clear is that transnational criminals involved in the fake trade are using complex trading routes and abusing many transit points. ACG is calling on all intermediaries to work much more closely with enforcement and industry, to share intelligence and disrupt this international form of criminality that will clearly hinder efforts to rebuild national economies, jobs and security".

Read the full OECD Global Trade in Fakes - A Worrying Threat Report here or find it in the Publications area on this website under EU Commission Reports & Bulletins