Trade surplus
When a country’s exports of goods and services exceed imports over a period—also called a favorable balance of trade in older language.
Surpluses mean a nation is on net sending goods abroad and receiving financial claims in return. They are neither inherently good nor bad: they can reflect competitiveness, weak domestic demand, or demographic savings patterns.
States
Sub-national units do not run independent balances of payments, but state export and import data show which regions lean outward versus inward—a useful complement to national surplus debates.
The content plan lists trade surplus among the concepts anchored to state_trade_metrics together with globalization, deficit, rates, flows, and growth.