California's wholesale trade in 1997 was $71 billion from 63,528 establishments. Of the total sales of durable goods in that year, electronic equipment made up 28%; industrial machinery, 26%; and instruments, 14%. Of the nondurable goods, groceries and related products accounted for more than 26%; printing and publishing, 21%; and chemicals, 16%.
The state's 1997 retail sales amounted to $91 billion. Of total 1997 types of establishments, food stores accounted for 11%; automobile dealers and service stations, 11%; and eating and drinking places, 33%. Food sales for 1997 totaled $47 billion, while general merchandise sales totaled $24 billion. Retail sales in the Los Angeles–Riverside–Orange County area totaled $107.6 billion, 48% of the state total and 5.7% of the US total. San Francisco–Oakland–San Jose accounted for 23.4% of the state's retail sales in 1992, and 2.8% of US retail sales.
Foreign trade is important to the California economy. In 1998, goods exported from California were valued at an estimated $116 billion. The Los Angeles metropolitan area handled $64 billion in exports during 1998. About 16% of the nation's exports were distributed from California in 1998. Imports totaled $209 billion. California's major markets are Japan, Canada, South Korea, Mexico, the European Community, and the industrializing countries of East Asia.
Leading exports include data-processing equipment, electrical tubes and transistors, scientific equipment, measuring instruments, optical equipment, and aircraft parts and spacecraft. California's leading agricultural export is cotton.
California's customs districts are the ports of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego. San Francisco and San Jose have been designated as federal foreign-trade zones, where imported goods may be stored duty-free for reshipment abroad, or customs duties avoided until the goods are actually marketed in the US.