In April, trade grew by a half
According to Statistics Estonia, in April, exports of goods increased by 54% and imports by 51% year on year. The trade growth was influenced by last year’s low reference base as well as by the increase in exports and imports of mineral products, electrical equipment and transport equipment.
In April, Estonia’s exports and imports of goods amounted to 1.6 billion euros at current prices. The monthly export value exceeded for the first time 1.5 billion euros. The trade deficit was 78 million euros, having increased by 10 million euros compared to April 2020.
Evelin Puura, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that higher prices of materials as well as increased volumes had a significant impact on trade growth in April. “In April last year, exports decreased by 17% and imports by 22%, as the free movement of goods was restricted in the European Union,” added Puura.
The main commodities exported were mineral products, electrical equipment, and wood and articles of wood. Compared to April 2020, the biggest increases occurred in the exports of mineral products (up by 173 million euros), electrical equipment (up by 88 million euros) and transport equipment (up by 75 million euros).
The main partner country for Estonia’s exports in goods was Finland, followed by the USA and Latvia. The biggest increase occurred in exports to the USA, with larger dispatches of telecommunication equipment, shale oil and processed fuel oil. Exports increased also to the Netherlands, where more processed fuel oil was exported, and to Latvia, where exports of transport equipment played the biggest role.
Goods of Estonian origin accounted for 70% of the total exports of goods. The exports of domestic goods increased by 53% and re-exports by 55%. The biggest rise occurred in the exports of processed mineral oils, telecommunication equipment, wood pellets, coniferous sawn windows and prefabricated wooden buildings of Estonian origin.
The main commodities imported to Estonia were electrical equipment, mineral products, transport equipment, and machinery and mechanical appliances. The imports of transport equipment increased the most (up by 120 million euros), followed by imports of mineral fuels (up by 95 million euros) and electrical equipment (up by 84 million euros).
Goods were imported the most from Finland, Russia and Germany. Imports increased the most from Russia, with more mineral products imported; from Germany, with increased imports of passenger cars, and from the USA on account of electrical equipment.
| Month | Exports, million euros | Imports, million euros | Balance, million euros | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2021 | Change, % | 2020 | 2021 | Change, % | 2020 | 2021 | |
| TOTAL | 4,489 | 5,489 | 22 | 4,848 | 5,934 | 22 | -358 | -445 |
| January | 1,148 | 1,191 | 4 | 1,165 | 1,306 | 12 | -17 | -115 |
| February | 1,090 | 1,261 | 16 | 1,212 | 1,330 | 10 | -122 | -69 |
| March | 1,235 | 1,472 | 19 | 1,387 | 1,656 | 19 | -152 | -184 |
| April | 1,017 | 1,565 | 54 | 1,085 | 1,643 | 51 | -68 | -78 |
| 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 | 1,565 | 100 | 54 | TOTAL | 1,643 | 100 | 51 |
| EU-27 | 1,013 | 65 | 53 | EU-27 | 1,152 | 70 | 40 |
| Euro area 19 | 755 | 48 | 58 | Euro area 19 | 854 | 52 | 35 |
| Non-EU | 552 | 35 | 56 | Non-EU | 491 | 30 | 86 |
| 1. Finland | 209 | 13 | 12 | 1. Finland | 207 | 13 | 24 |
| 2. USA | 182 | 12 | 152 | 2. Russia | 172 | 10 | 83 |
| 3. Latvia | 141 | 9 | 72 | 3. Germany | 166 | 10 | 52 |
| 4. Sweden | 131 | 8 | 34 | 4. Lithuania | 130 | 8 | 22 |
| 5. Lithuania | 96 | 6 | 88 | 5. Latvia | 128 | 8 | 34 |
| 6. Netherlands | 95 | 6 | 303 | 6. Sweden | 125 | 8 | 60 |
| 7. Germany | 87 | 6 | 19 | 7. Poland | 107 | 7 | 47 |
| 8. Russia | 66 | 4 | 33 | 8. Netherlands | 69 | 4 | 27 |
| 9. United Kingdom | 65 | 4 | 250 | 9. USA | 64 | 4 | 298 |
| 10. Norway | 50 | 3 | 34 | 10. China | 59 | 4 | 17 |
| Commodity section (chapter) by Combined Nomenclature (CN) | Balance, million euros | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exports, million euros | Share, % | Change on previous year, % | Imports, million euros | Share, % | Change on previous year, % | ||
| TOTAL | 1,565 | 100 | 54 | 1,643 | 100 | 51 | -78 |
| Agricultural products and food preparations (I–IV) | 118 | 8 | 19 | 149 | 9 | 27 | -32 |
| Mineral products (V) | 267 | 17 | 185 | 211 | 13 | 82 | 55 |
| Raw materials and products of chemical industry (VI) | 74 | 5 | -3 | 145 | 9 | 1 | -71 |
| Articles of plastics and rubber (VII) | 47 | 3 | 47 | 93 | 6 | 40 | -45 |
| Wood and articles of wood (IX) | 163 | 10 | 36 | 74 | 5 | 51 | 89 |
| Paper and articles thereof (X) | 31 | 2 | 15 | 24 | 1 | 23 | 6 |
| Textiles and textile articles (XI) | 36 | 2 | 36 | 53 | 3 | 28 | -17 |
| Base metals and articles of base metal (XV) | 126 | 8 | 47 | 164 | 10 | 48 | -38 |
| Machinery and mechanical appliances (84) | 123 | 8 | 32 | 179 | 11 | 69 | -56 |
| Electrical equipment (85) | 236 | 15 | 59 | 208 | 13 | 68 | 28 |
| Transport equipment (XVII) | 124 | 8 | 154 | 186 | 11 | 183 | -62 |
| Optical, measuring, precision instruments (XVIII) | 39 | 3 | -18 | 34 | 2 | 19 | 5 |
| Miscellaneous manufactured articles (XX) | 116 | 7 | 50 | 40 | 2 | 50 | 76 |
| Other | 65 | 4 | 57 | 82 | 5 | 20 | -17 |
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. Visualised data of Estonia’s foreign trade can be viewed in Statistics Estonia’s application.
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.
For further information:
Kadri Kütt
Media Relations Manager
Marketing and Dissemination Department
Statistics Estonia
Tel +372 625 9181