Statistics: Foreign trade climbs to record level

Estonia's exports of goods increased by 30 percent and imports by 37 percent year on year in September, state agency Statistics Estonia says. Exports of goods in September amounted to €1.7 billion and imports to €1.8 billion.
In the third quarter, exports grew by 34 percent and imports by 35 percent. The trade deficit was €72 million, having increased by €91 million compared to September 2020.
Statistics Estonia analyst Evelin Puura said that in comparison with both the same month and the same quarter of last year, increased exports and imports of mineral fuels and wood and articles of wood were significant drivers of trade growth.
"In September, trade figures reached a new record. Export and import values are the highest ever: this is connected with continuing price increases as well as growth in trade volumes," Puura said.
The main commodities exported in September were mineral fuels, electrical equipment, and wood and articles of wood. Compared to September 2020, the biggest increases occurred in the exports of mineral fuels (up by €163 million), wood and articles of wood (up by €74 million) and electrical equipment (up by €63 million).
The main partner country for Estonia's exports of goods was Finland, followed by the U.S. and Latvia. The biggest increase occurred in exports to the U.S. and the Netherlands. There were larger dispatches of telecommunications equipment, processed fuel oil, and wood and articles of wood to the U.S. More processed fuel oil was exported to the Netherlands.

Re-exports from Estonia increased by 34 percent and exports of domestic goods by 28 percent. Goods of Estonian origin accounted for 73 percent of the total exports of goods. In the case of goods of Estonian origin, the biggest rise occurred in the exports of processed fuels, telecommunications equipment, strips of coniferous wood, wooden doors, glue-laminated timber and prefabricated wooden buildings.
The main commodities imported to Estonia were mineral fuels, electrical equipment, mechanical machinery, and base metals and articles of base metal. The imports of mineral fuels increased the most (up by €197 million), followed by imports of base metals and articles of base metal (up by €59 million) and wood and articles of wood (up by €46 million).
In September, the top partner countries for Estonia's imports of goods were Finland, Russia and Germany. The biggest rise was recorded in imports from Finland and Russia. More electrical energy was imported from Finland and more fuel oils from Russia.

For more data and information, see the foreign trade section of Statistics Estonia's website. Visualized data of Estonia's foreign trade can be viewed in Statistics Estonia's application. The full statistical database is available here.
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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste