In May, exports of goods declined by 25%
Estonia’s exports of goods amounted to 1 billion euros and imports to 1.09 billion euros at current prices. The trade deficit was 84 million euros; it decreased by 16 million euros compared to May 2019.
According to Evelin Puura, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, trade decreased the most with European Union Member States. Exports decreased by 232 million euros and imports by 306 million euros. “In May, trade decreased in most commodity sections, but, on the positive side, the month-on-month change was not very significant,” explained Puura.
In May, the top destination country of Estonia’s exports was Finland, followed by Sweden and Latvia. The biggest decreases occurred in exports to Spain (down by 41 million euros), Finland, the USA and the Netherlands (all down by 34 million euros). Compared to the previous year, shale oil was exported less to Spain and the Netherlands, fuel oils and lubricating oils to Finland and communication equipment to the USA. Exports increased the most to Canada (up by 10 million euros), with more refined motor spirit dispatched.
The biggest exports from Estonia were electrical equipment, wood and articles of wood, and mechanical appliances. The year-on-year decline in exports came mainly from mineral products (down by 106 million euros), electrical equipment (down by 44 million euros) and miscellaneous manufactured articles (down by 40 million euros).
In May, goods of Estonian origin accounted for 71% of the total exports of goods. Their exports decreased by 27% and re-exports by 18% compared to May 2019. The biggest decline occurred for shale oil of Estonian origin, prefabricated log houses and communication equipment. Goods of Estonian origin accounted for the biggest share in the commodity sections of wood and articles of wood (96%) and miscellaneous manufactured articles, such as furniture and log houses (91%).
The main countries of consignment were Finland, Russia and Latvia. Imports decreased the most from Sweden (down by 71 million euros), Lithuania (down by 55 million euros) and Germany (down by 47 million euros). From Sweden and Germany, the imports of motor cars, and from Lithuania, the imports of fuels decreased the most. Imports of goods increased the most from China and Switzerland (both up by 4 million euros), with more protective equipment imported from China and unwrought gold from Switzerland.
The main commodities imported to Estonia were mineral products, electrical equipment, agricultural products and food preparations. The biggest decrease occurred in the imports of transport equipment (down by 90 million euros), electrical equipment and mechanical appliances (both down by 48 million euros).
| Month | Exports, million euros | Imports, million euros | Balance, million euros | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 2020 | change, % | 2019 | 2020 | change, % | 2019 | 2020 | |
| TOTAL | 6,132 | 5,508 | -10 | 6,757 | 5,931 | -12 | -625 | -423 |
| January | 1,158 | 1,148 | -1 | 1,278 | 1,162 | -9 | -120 | -14 |
| February | 1,163 | 1,093 | -6 | 1,251 | 1,210 | -3 | -88 | -117 |
| March | 1,238 | 1,239 | 0 | 1,405 | 1,388 | -1 | -166 | -149 |
| April | 1,239 | 1,026 | -17 | 1,389 | 1,085 | -22 | -150 | -60 |
| May | 1,334 | 1,003 | -25 | 1,434 | 1,086 | -24 | -100 | -84 |
| Country of destination, group of countries | Exports, million euros | Share, % | Change on same month of previous year, % | Country of consignment, group of countries | Imports, million euros | Share, % | Change on same month of previous year, % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOTAL | 1,003 | 100 | -25 | TOTAL | 1,086 | 100 | -24 |
| EU-27 | 690 | 69 | -25 | EU-27 | 816 | 75 | -27 |
| Euro area 19 | 493 | 49 | -27 | Euro area 19 | 616 | 57 | -24 |
| Non-EU and United Kingdom | 313 | 31 | -24 | Non-EU and United Kingdom | 271 | 25 | -14 |
| 1. Finland | 175 | 17 | -16 | 1. Finland | 162 | 15 | -11 |
| 2. Sweden | 120 | 12 | -16 | 2. Russia | 108 | 10 | -12 |
| 3. Latvia | 96 | 10 | -22 | 3. Latvia | 103 | 9 | -12 |
| 4. Germany | 68 | 7 | -20 | 4. Germany | 103 | 9 | -31 |
| 5. Lithuania | 61 | 6 | -20 | 5. Lithuania | 95 | 9 | -37 |
| 6. USA | 56 | 6 | -38 | 6. Sweden | 80 | 7 | -47 |
| 7. Russia | 56 | 6 | -29 | 7. Poland | 72 | 7 | -22 |
| 8. Norway | 35 | 4 | -40 | 8. Netherlands | 54 | 5 | -11 |
| 9. Netherlands | 31 | 3 | -52 | 9. China | 53 | 5 | 8 |
| 10. Poland | 31 | 3 | -8 | 10. Italy | 26 | 2 | -29 |
| Commodity section (chapter) by Combined Nomenclature (CN) | Exports | Imports | Balance, million euros | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| million euros | share, % | change on same period of previous year, % | million euros | share, % | change on same period of previous year, % | ||
| TOTAL | 1,003 | 100 | -25 | 1,086 | 100 | -24 | -84 |
| Agricultural products and food preparations (I–IV) | 93 | 9 | -15 | 118 | 11 | -20 | -26 |
| Mineral products (V) | 79 | 8 | -57 | 149 | 14 | -13 | -70 |
| Raw materials and products of chemical industry (VI) | 56 | 6 | -18 | 108 | 10 | -17 | -52 |
| Articles of plastics and rubber (VII) | 32 | 3 | -21 | 65 | 6 | -15 | -33 |
| Wood and articles of wood (IX) | 122 | 12 | -13 | 46 | 4 | -7 | 77 |
| Paper and articles thereof (X) | 24 | 2 | -13 | 19 | 2 | -25 | 4 |
| Textiles and textile articles (XI) | 27 | 3 | -23 | 43 | 4 | -25 | -16 |
| Base metals and articles of base metal (XV) | 86 | 9 | -21 | 99 | 9 | -29 | -13 |
| Mechanical appliances (84) | 96 | 10 | -23 | 112 | 10 | -30 | -16 |
| Electrical equipment (85) | 152 | 15 | -22 | 132 | 12 | -27 | 20 |
| Transport equipment (XVII) | 59 | 6 | -34 | 82 | 8 | -52 | -23 |
| Optical, measuring, precision instruments (XVIII) | 48 | 5 | 14 | 33 | 3 | -6 | 15 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles (XX) | 87 | 9 | -31 | 28 | 3 | -24 | 59 |
| Other | 43 | 3 | 0 | 52 | 4 | -3 | -10 |
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.