Slowdown shrinks trade deficit

TALLINN - Estonia’s exports for 2009 decreased by 24 percent, with imports dropping 33 percent, compared to 2008, reports news agency LETA. Exports to Finland and Sweden decreased the most, by trade value. In the last months of the year the decline in trade slowed.

In 2009, the value of exports of goods from Estonia totaled 101.3 billion kroons (6.4 billion euros), and imports to Estonia reached 114.1 billion kroons at current prices. Compared to 2008, the value of exports decreased by 31.1 billion kroons and imports by 56 billion kroons. The trade deficit came to 12.8 billion kroons, which was threefold smaller than in the previous year.
The major destination countries for exports were Finland (18 percent of Estonia’s total exports), Sweden (13 percent) and Latvia (10 percent). Exports declined to all countries, the most to Finland and Sweden, by nearly 5.6 billion kroons, compared to 2008. The decline of exports to Finland and Sweden was mainly caused by the decrease of exports of electrical equipment and of wood and wood products.

The main countries for purchase of goods were Finland (14 percent of Estonia’s total imports), Lithuania (11 percent), Germany and Latvia (10 percent each). Imports declined from all countries, with the largest decline in goods from Germany (by 10.9 billion kroons), Finland and Sweden (by 7.5 billion kroons each). From Germany and Sweden imports declined due to the decrease in imports of vehicles and car parts, and from Finland due to the decrease in imports of machinery and equipment.
In 2009, the largest exporting sector was machinery and equipment (20 percent of total exports), followed by mineral products (17 percent) and agricultural products and processed foods (10 percent). There was a significant decrease in exports of machinery and equipment (by 9 billion kroons) as well as metals and metal products (7.1 billion kroons). Only exports of mineral products (incl. oil products) increased (by 1 billion kroons).

In 2009, the most imports were in machinery and equipment (20 percent of the total), and agricultural products and processed foods (13 percent). The turnover of imports declined among all the commodity sectors, the most significant was in the import of machinery and equipment (by 14.8 billion kroons) and of transport equipment (by 11.5 billion kroons).