Agriculture is Mississippi’s number one industry, employing approximately 17.4% of the state’s workforce. However, Mississippi experienced no significant export growth to China in 2021. China remains the state’s third largest export market though. The 2021 total goods export to China of $1.2 billion remains above the 2008-2017 average of $830 million. Mississippi’s unique history as the birthplace of American music and its central role in the southern culture makes it an attractive destination for tourism and previously attracted a steady influx of Chinese tourists. But this sector experienced one of the most significant slumps throughout the Heartland Region, with service exports to China taking a 53% hit in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic. Mississippi’s economic development has lagged behind other states, but unprecedented federal resources are coming to the Mississippi River Corridor. In March 2022, the state hosted a Chinese delegation in Jackson to explore future opportunities for increased trade and investment. The Mississippi Delta region also has a unique Chinese Heritage dating back to the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, when immigrants of Chinese ancestry were brought in to work the vast agricultural fields. This legacy has been carefully preserved by the Delta Chinese Heritage Museum in Cleveland Mississippi. 

While Mississippi had 0% growth in goods exporting in 2021, holding steady at $1.2 billion, this total nevertheless remains above the 2008-2017 average of $830 million. Moreover, China remains the state’s third largest export market. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, service exports from Mississippi to China fell by -29%.

Mississippi was averaging around $1 billion in export revenue in the five years prior to the trade war beginning in 2018, which had exporting revenue plummeting 30% from 2017 to just $700 million. Prior to the trade war, ⅔ of all Mississippi soybeans were sold to China–during the dispute however, oilseeds and grains dropped from $369 million in 2017 to just $85 million in 2018.

Mississippi’s exporting revenue of $1.2 billion in 2021 represents a 0% increase from 2020–a stagnation that is unusual given the Heartland’s average of a 21% increase. Lack of growth may be attributed to the balancing of a modest upswing in exporting of oilseeds and grains (from $394 million in 2020 to $417 million in 2021) and a marked downturn in exporting miscellaneous crops (from $289 million in 2020 to $118 million in 2021). Mississippi is the Heartland’s top exporter of miscellaneous crops to China (that being crops outside of oilseeds and grains), and the drop from second the third position in the states’ top exports has offset other areas of growth. Since our last issue, Mississippi and its trade with China has proved to be heavily impacted by the effects of COVID-19; of all the Heartland states, Mississippi has borne the most significant slump in services exports by percentage, taking a 53% hit in 2020. Much of this decrease may be attributed to the loss of international tourism. Previously, personal travel to/from China had accounted for $71 million dollars in 2019, retaining its position as Mississippi’s top service to China despite revenue decreasing in 2019 across the U.S. with fewer Chinese tourists visiting–for reference, in Mississippi, Chinese tourism generated $124 million in 2018, and $137 million in 2017. For many years prior to the pandemic, Mississippi had attracted a steady influx of Chinese tourism as many Chinese tourists–driven by the mainland ban on gambling–were attracted to the coastal and riverfront casinos, such as those found in Biloxi and Tunica. While Chinese tourism may be on hold for the duration of the pandemic, this lost business may likely recover once travel restrictions are lifted.

Mississippi is rife with potential avenues of increased trade and potential investment, as evinced by the recent Chinese delegation in summer of 2022. The history of Mississippi’s Delta Chinese community, a story broadly unacknowledged, has been receiving attention in 2022, with websites like Buzzfeed and the Unsung History podcast reporting on the topic both in May.

China ranks as Mississippi’s third leading place of origin for international students in 2021, with an estimated 245 students in attendance. This marks an estimated -22% decrease in enrollment of Chinese students from 2021 to 2022, and a -44% decrease from 2020 to 2022.

This data and content is updated periodically. The most recent update was January 2023.