Under the influence of rebounding EU economy and high inflation the value of Latvian exports and imports reached records in 2021, official statistics showed.
The Latvian Central Statistical Bureau wrote in a press release, that its provisional data showed that in 2021, Latvia exported EUR 16.49 billion worth of goods, EUR 3.19 billion or 24% more than in 2020, and imported EUR 19.43 billion, EUR 4.27 billion or 28.2% more, and thus far this was the highest exports and imports value. Foreign trade turnover of Latvia at current prices reached EUR 35.92 billion – EUR 7.46 billion or 26.2% more than in 2020.
Last year, main commodities in exports of Latvia were wood, wood products and charcoal; electrical machinery and equipment; mineral products. Wood, wood products and charcoal were mostly exported to the United Kingdom (31%), Germany (7.3 %) and Sweden (7.2%), electrical machinery and equipment to Lithuania (26.5%), Estonia (12.2%) and the Russian Federation (8.1%), mineral products to Lithuania (43.7%), Estonia (12.7%) and Finland (7. %).
In 2021, goods were exported from Latvia to 195 countries worldwide. The five largest export partners were Lithuania, Estonia, the United Kingdom, Germany and the Russian Federation. Their share comprised 50.8% of the total exports value. The main exports to Lithuania were machinery, mechanical appliances and electrical equipment, to Estonia, the Russia and Germany – agricultural and food products, and to the United Kingdom – wood and wood products.
In 2021, exports of goods from Latvia to EU countries reached EUR 11.1 billion, or 67% of the total value of exports. Of these, exports of goods made in Latvia to EU countries accounted for almost half, or 44.6%. The goods produced in Latvia were mostly exported to Lithuania (EUR 706.5 million), Sweden (EUR 687.1 million) and Germany (EUR 686.8 million). The most important goods produced in Latvia exported to EU countries were wood and wood products, charcoal; iron and steel products; dairy products, poultry eggs, natural honey, other food products of animal origin.
In 2021, main commodities in imports of Latvia were electrical machinery and equipment; mineral products; machinery and mechanical appliances. The main imports of electrical machinery and equipment were from China (16.8%), Lithuania (12.7%) and Poland (11.3%), mineral products from the Russian Federation (33.4%), Lithuania (32.1%), Estonia (17.2%), machinery and mechanical appliances from Germany (17.6%), Lithuania (12.6%) and Poland (9%).
In 2021, Latvia imported goods from 167 countries worldwide. The five largest import partners were Lithuania, Germany, Poland, the Russian Federation and Estonia. Their share comprised 55.2% of the total imports value. The main imports from Lithuania were agricultural and food products, from Germany and Poland – machinery, mechanical appliances and electrical equipment, and from the Russian Federation and Estonia – mineral products, according to the press release. (BNN/Business World Magazine)