Imports rise in value

Trade gap widens by ten percent in first nine months of 2011 on an increase in imports

The trade balance posted a deficit slightly more than $11 billion in the first nine months of 2011. According to figures released by the Higher Customs Council, the deficit widened by ten percent relative to the same period of 2010.

The value of imports at the end of September stood at $14.4 billion, up by around nine percent on a yearly basis. This increase carried with it an important inflationary effect. When discounting the inflation rate, the real value of imports would actually decline by around five percent over the covered period.

The import bill was significantly affected by the global rise in oil prices with the value of oil imports accounting for around 20 percent of total imports. Oil prices jumped by 45 percent in the first nine months of 2011.

Exports were up by around seven percent year-on-year, as they reached $3.2 billion at the end of September. At end-September 2009, the value of exports was $2.4 billion.

Exports of ‘Machinery & Electrical Instruments’ stood at $400 million at-end September 2011, while it was $648 million in the same period a year earlier. The value of ‘Prepared Foodstuffs’ exports reached $273 million during the first nine months of the year, compared to $576 million for 2010. The ‘Products of Chemical Industries’ category was the exception, as it stood at $269 million, rising from $215 million in 2010.