The decline in foreign trade in goods in February was mainly due to mineral fuels
According to Statistics Estonia, in February 2024, exports of goods decreased by 15% and imports by 10% compared with February 2023. Exports of goods amounted to about 1.3 billion and imports to 1.5 billion euros at current prices. The trade deficit was 202 million euros, which is 67 million euros more than in February last year.
Jane Leppmets, analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that, in February, the biggest decline year on year occurred in the exports and imports of mineral products. “Trade in mineral products was impacted the most by electricity and natural gas. Compared with February 2023, there has been a decrease in the prices of electricity and natural gas and also in the imported and exported quantities of these products,” explained Leppmets.
The main commodities exported in February 2024 were electrical equipment (15% of Estonia’s total exports), wood and articles of wood (13%) and agricultural products and food preparations (13%). Compared with February 2023, the biggest fall occurred in the exports of mineral products (down by 165 million euros), mechanical appliances (down by 24 million euros) and miscellaneous manufactured articles (down by 24 million euros).
The share of goods of Estonian origin in total exports rose by 5 percentage points compared with February 2023, reaching 69% in February this year. The exports of goods of Estonian origin decreased by 8% year on year. The fall in exports of goods of Estonian origin was mainly due to the decreased exports of mineral products.
Estonia’s top export partner in February was Finland (16% of total exports), followed by Sweden (10%) and Latvia (9%). The main commodities exported were electrical equipment to Finland, wood and articles of wood and electrical equipment to Sweden, and transport equipment to Latvia. Compared with February 2023, the biggest decline was registered in exports to Finland (down by 93 million euros), Latvia (down by 46 million euros), and Sweden (down by 29 million euros). Year on year, there were fewer exports of mineral products to Finland and Latvia, and decreased dispatches of miscellaneous manufactured articles (incl. prefabricated wooden buildings) to Sweden. The greatest increase occurred in exports to Germany (up by 15 million euros), where more electrical equipment was exported.
The main commodities imported in February were agricultural products and food preparations (13% of Estonia’s total imports), electrical equipment (12%) and transport equipment (12%). Compared with February 2023, the biggest fall occurred in the imports of mineral products (down by 91 million euros), electrical equipment (down by 37 million euros) and mechanical appliances (down by 32 million euros). There was an increase only in the imports of agricultural products and food preparations (up by 18 million euros).
In February, Estonia imported the biggest share of goods from Finland and Latvia (each accounted for 13% of total imports), followed by Germany (12%) and Lithuania (12%). The main commodities imported were electricity from Finland, natural gas from Latvia, motor cars from Germany, and gas oils from Lithuania. Compared with February 2023, the biggest fall occurred in imports of goods from Latvia (down by 75 million euros), Finland (down by 57 million euros), and China (down by 17 million euros). There were fewer imports of mineral products from Latvia and Finland, and decreased arrivals of electrical equipment from China. Imports from Lithuania grew the most (by 34 million euros), as there were more arrivals of mineral products than in February last year.
| Month | Exports, million euros | Imports, million euros | Balance, million euros | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 202 4 | Change, % | 2023 | 2024 | Change, % | 2023 | 2024 | |
| January | 1,555 | 1,389 | -11 | 1,737 | 1,511 | -13 | -182 | -122 |
| February | 1,586 | 1,345 | -15 | 1,721 | 1,547 | -10 | -135 | -202 |
| Country of destination, group of countries | Exports, million euros | Share, % | Change on previous year, % | Country of consignment, group of countries | Imports, million euros | Share, % | Change on previous year, % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | 1,345 | 100 | -15 | TOTAL | 1,547 | 100 | -10 |
| EU-27 | 999 | 74 | -17 | EU-27 | 1,353 | 87 | -10 |
| Euro area 20 | 723 | 54 | -21 | Euro area 20 | 1,018 | 66 | -12 |
| Non-EU | 346 | 26 | -9 | Non-EU | 194 | 13 | -13 |
| 1. Finland | 212 | 16 | -31 | 1. Finland | 201 | 13 | -22 |
| 2. Sweden | 129 | 10 | -18 | 2. Latvia | 195 | 13 | -28 |
| 3. Latvia | 121 | 9 | -27 | 3. Germany | 187 | 12 | -2 |
| 4. Lithuania | 108 | 8 | -15 | 4. Lithuania | 179 | 12 | 24 |
| 5. Germany | 106 | 8 | 17 | 5. Sweden | 126 | 8 | 0 |
| 6. Netherlands | 61 | 5 | -30 | 6. Poland | 126 | 8 | 2 |
| 7. Poland | 55 | 4 | 26 | 7. Netherlands | 83 | 5 | -13 |
| 8. Denmark | 53 | 4 | 0 | 8. China | 47 | 3 | -26 |
| 9. Norway | 46 | 3 | -15 | 9. Italy | 40 | 3 | -19 |
| 10. USA | 42 | 3 | -30 | 10. Denmark | 35 | 2 | -8 |
| Commodity section (chapter) by Combined Nomenclature (CN) | Exports | Imports | Balance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Million euros | Share, %
|
Change on previous year, % | Million euros | Share, % | Change on previous year, % | Million euros | |
| TOTAL | 1,345 | 100 | -15 | 1,547 | 100 | -10 | -202 |
| Agricultural products and food preparations (I–IV) | 176 | 13 | -2 | 204 | 13 | 9 | -28 |
| Mineral products (V) | 67 | 5 | -71 | 155 | 10 | -37 | -89 |
| Raw materials and products of chemical industry (VI) | 72 | 5 | -9 | 142 | 9 | -2 | -70 |
| Articles of plastics and rubber (VII) | 41 | 3 | -10 | 76 | 5 | -7 | -36 |
| Wood and articles of wood (IX) | 177 | 13 | -1 | 49 | 3 | -11 | 127 |
| Paper and articles thereof (X) | 32 | 2 | -2 | 26 | 2 | -6 | 6 |
| Textiles and textile articles (XI) | 35 | 3 | -2 | 55 | 4 | -15 | -20 |
| Base metals and articles of base metal (XV) | 129 | 10 | 7 | 150 | 10 | 0 | -21 |
| Machinery and mechanical appliances (84) | 112 | 8 | -18 | 149 | 10 | -18 | -36 |
| Electrical equipment (85) | 196 | 15 | -4 | 193 | 12 | -16 | 3 |
| Transport equipment (XVII) | 121 | 9 | -10 | 192 | 12 | -2 | -70 |
| Optical | 47 | 3 | 22 | 36 | 2 | -4 | 11 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles (XX) | 90 | 7 | -21 | 43 | 3 | 1 | 47 |
| Other | 50 | 4 | -7 | 75 | 5 | -1 | -25 |
Statistics Estonia performs the statistical activity “Foreign trade” for the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications with the aim to determine how exporting and importing enterprises are performing in Estonia.
See also the foreign trade section on our website. Statistics Estonia’s foreign trade application provides visualised foreign trade data for Estonia.
More detailed data have been published in the statistical database. Due to rounding, the sum of rows in some tables may differ from the sum total of the column.
When using Statistics Estonia’s data and graphs, please indicate the source.
For further information:
Kai Kaljumäe
Communications Partner
Marketing and Dissemination Department
Statistics Estonia
Tel +372 625 9184
press [at] stat.ee (press[at]stat[dot]ee)