Exports to Latvia, the Netherlands and the USA fell the most in October
According to Statistics Estonia, in October, Estonia’s exports of goods amounted to 1.5 billion and imports to 1.8 billion euros. Compared with October 2022, exports of goods decreased by 21% and imports by 17% at current prices. The trade deficit in October was 307 million euros, which is 24 million euros more than a year earlier.
Jane Leppmets, analyst at Statistics Estonia, noted that prices rose rapidly last year, which significantly boosted trade values and created a higher reference base. This year has been characterised by a decline in trade which continued in October as export prices decreased by 2.4% year on year. “Exports have remained at a similar level in recent months, amounting to 1.5 billion euros in August, September as well as October,” added Leppmets.
The main commodities exported in October were electrical equipment (15% of Estonia’s total exports), agricultural products and food preparations (12%) and transport equipment (11%). The biggest fall was recorded in the exports of mineral products – down by 158 million euros. The exports of agricultural products and food preparations and wood and articles of wood decreased by 80 million and 55 million euros, respectively. There was an increase only in the exports of transport equipment (up by 29 million euros) and base metals and articles of base metal (up by 12 million euros).
In October, exports of goods of Estonian origin were 23% lower than in October last year. The share of goods of Estonian origin also decreased by one percentage point year on year – it was 64% of Estonia's total exports in October this year.
Estonia’s top export partner in October was Finland (16% of Estonia’s total exports), followed by Latvia (11%), Sweden (9%) and Lithuania (9%). The main commodities exported were electrical equipment (incl. static converters) to Finland, mineral products (incl. electricity) to Latvia, electrical equipment (incl. communication equipment) to Sweden, and transport equipment (incl. motor cars) to Lithuania. Compared with October 2022, the biggest decline was registered in exports to Latvia (down by 82 million euros), the Netherlands (down by 59 million euros), and the United States (down by 58 million euros). There were decreased exports of mineral products (incl. electricity) to Latvia, fewer dispatches of mineral products (incl. fuel oil) to the Netherlands, and reduced exports of electrical equipment (incl. communication equipment) to the USA. The biggest rise occurred in exports to Singapore (up by 25 million euros) where more mineral products (incl. shale oil) were exported than last year.
The main commodities imported in October were transport equipment and electrical equipment (each representing 13% of Estonia’s total imports), and agricultural products and food preparations (12%). The biggest fall was recorded in the imports of mineral products – down by 239 million euros. The imports of mechanical appliances and electrical equipment decreased by 45 million and 39 million euros, respectively. There was an increase only in the imports of transport equipment (up by 32 million euros) and agricultural products and food preparations (up by 13 million euros).
In October, the top partner countries for Estonia’s imports of goods were Finland (16% of Estonia’s total imports), Germany (12%), Lithuania (11%) and Latvia (11%). The main commodities imported were mineral products (incl. electricity) from Finland, transport equipment (incl. motor cars) from Germany, mineral products (incl. gas oils) from Lithuania, and mineral products (incl. natural gas) from Latvia. The biggest fall occurred in imports of goods from Latvia (down by 63 million euros), Russia (down by 57 million euros), and Finland (down by 50 million euros). Compared with October last year, Estonia imported fewer mineral products from these countries: there were decreased imports of natural gas from Latvia, gas oils from Russia, and electricity from Finland.
| Month | Exports, million euros | Imports, million euros | Balance, million euros | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2023 | Change, % | 2022 | 2023 | Change, % | 2022 | 2023 | |
| TOTAL | 17,860 | 15,147 | -15 | 20,723 | 17,632 | -15 | -2,862 | -2,485 |
| January | 1,637 | 1,493 | -9 | 1,782 | 1,657 | -7 | -145 | -164 |
| February | 1,509 | 1,526 | 1 | 1,770 | 1,643 | -7 | -261 | -117 |
| March | 1,985 | 1,706 | -14 | 2,171 | 1,916 | -12 | -186 | -210 |
| April | 1,601 | 1,500 | -6 | 2,136 | 1,749 | -18 | -536 | -249 |
| May | 1,929 | 1,645 | -15 | 2,229 | 1,970 | -12 | -301 | -325 |
| June | 1,838 | 1,597 | -13 | 2,144 | 1,856 | -13 | -306 | -259 |
| July | 1,698 | 1,266 | -25 | 2,049 | 1,641 | -20 | -351 | -375 |
| August | 1,890 | 1,482 | -22 | 2,190 | 1,768 | -19 | -300 | -286 |
| September | 1,931 | 1,475 | -24 | 2,125 | 1,670 | -21 | -194 | -195 |
| October | 1,843 | 1,457 | -21 | 2,126 | 1,764 | -17 | -283 | -307 |
| 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 | 1,457 | 100 | -21 | TOTAL | 1,764 | 100 | -17 |
| EU-27 | 1,080 | 74 | -16 | EU-27 | 1,533 | 87 | -12 |
| Euro area 20 | 807 | 55 | -18 | Euro area 20 | 1,166 | 66 | -14 |
| Non-EU | 377 | 26 | -31 | Non-EU | 231 | 13 | -40 |
| 1. Finland | 236 | 16 | -15 | 1. Finland | 279 | 16 | -15 |
| 2. Latvia | 166 | 11 | -33 | 2. Germany | 210 | 12 | -4 |
| 3. Sweden | 135 | 9 | -17 | 3. Lithuania | 201 | 11 | -10 |
| 4. Lithuania | 132 | 9 | 15 | 4. Latvia | 191 | 11 | -25 |
| 5. Germany | 113 | 8 | 16 | 5. Sweden | 142 | 8 | -5 |
| 6. Poland | 54 | 4 | -3 | 6. Poland | 134 | 8 | -10 |
| 7. Norway | 48 | 3 | -24 | 7. Netherlands | 100 | 6 | -11 |
| 8. Netherlands | 46 | 3 | -56 | 8. China | 58 | 3 | -29 |
| 9. Denmark | 39 | 3 | -31 | 9. Italy | 53 | 3 | -3 |
| 10. Russia | 36 | 2 | -51 | 10. Czechia | 40 | 2 | 30 |
| 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 | 1,457 | 100 | -21 | 1,764 | 100 | -17 | -307 |
| Agricultural products and food preparations (I–IV) | 170 | 12 | -32 | 217 | 12 | 6 | -47 |
| Mineral products (V) | 101 | 7 | -61 | 198 | 11 | -55 | -98 |
| Raw materials and products of chemical industry (VI) | 74 | 5 | -17 | 157 | 9 | -10 | -83 |
| Articles of plastics and rubber (VII) | 48 | 3 | -11 | 89 | 5 | -14 | -42 |
| Wood and articles of wood (IX) | 145 | 10 | -28 | 52 | 3 | -21 | 94 |
| Paper and articles thereof (X) | 32 | 2 | -17 | 30 | 2 | -6 | 2 |
| Textiles and textile articles (XI) | 36 | 2 | -16 | 68 | 4 | -13 | -32 |
| Base metals and articles of base metal (XV) | 137 | 9 | 10 | 161 | 9 | -8 | -24 |
| Machinery and mechanical appliances (84) | 131 | 9 | -22 | 166 | 9 | -21 | -35 |
| Electrical equipment (85) | 218 | 15 | -12 | 224 | 13 | -15 | -6 |
| Transport equipment (XVII) | 153 | 11 | 23 | 227 | 13 | 16 | -74 |
| Optical, measuring, precision instruments (XVIII) | 52 | 4 | -2 | 40 | 2 | -13 | 12 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles (XX) | 102 | 7 | -19 | 49 | 3 | -11 | 53 |
| Other | 57 | 4 | -14 | 85 | 5 | 0 | -27 |
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.
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