This article presents an analysis of the impact of the composition of exports on export performance. With the help of a set of different trade models employing two suppliers and two regions of destination it is demonstrated that regional preferences and commodity specialization can have a strong influence on export performance, both directly and indirectly. The reason for the latter is that the composition of exports not only has an impact on total exports but also influences the sensitivity of total exports for changes in the variables determining export competitiveness. Using data derived from the literature these points are illustrated for Germany and France as suppliers, and the USA and Japan as regions of destination. The same models have been applied to variants using a commodity dimension.