In their article, the authors present development and importance of the international trade in services. There was carried out an analysis of value of sales and shares of developed countries, developing ones and those in transition in the global trade in services. The authors carried out an assessment of the importance of services in total trade turnover of particular groups of countries. They pointed out to a dynamic growth of volume of exports and imports of services after 1980 as well as differentiation of features of the trade in services in the groups of states surveyed.