2021 was a year of rapid growth in trade

In 2021, Estonia’s exports of goods amounted to 18 billion euros and imports to nearly 20 billion euros at current prices. The trade deficit was 1.8 billion euros, which is 880 million euros higher than in 2020. The increase in trade deficit was mainly due to trade in raw materials and products of chemical industry, and transport equipment. The highest surplus was recorded in trade in wood and articles of wood, and miscellaneous manufactured articles (incl. furniture, prefabricated wooden buildings).

Evelin Puura, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, noted that 2021 will be remembered as the year of rapid price increases which significantly boosted trade turnover. Compared to 2020, the export price index increased by 12.2% and the import price index by 8.1%. Estonia exported goods to 186 countries and imported goods from 151 countries. “European Union Member States were our main trade partners, as their share was 67% in exports and 73% in imports,” added Puura.

The biggest export items were mineral fuels, electrical equipment, and wood and articles of wood. Compared to 2020, the biggest rise was recorded in the exports of mineral fuels (incl. processed mineral oils, heavy fuel oils and electricity) which grew by 1.5 billion euros, followed by the exports of wood and articles of wood (incl. coniferous wood strips, wood pellets, glue-laminated timber) which grew by 512 million euros, and the exports of electrical equipment (incl. communication equipment, phones) which grew by 466 million euros.

The main partner country for Estonia’s exports of goods was Finland, followed by Latvia and the USA. The main commodities exported were engine parts, articles of metal, and natural gas to Finland, and electricity, milk and motor cars to Latvia. The biggest rise occurred in exports to the USA, Latvia and the Netherlands. More communication equipment and mineral fuels were exported to the USA, more electricity and motor cars to Latvia, and there were larger dispatches of mineral fuels and prefabricated wooden buildings to the Netherlands.

Re-exports from Estonia increased by 23% and exports of domestic goods by 29%. Goods of Estonian origin accounted for 72% of the total exports of goods. In the case of goods of Estonian origin, the biggest rise occurred in the exports of processed fuels, communication equipment, prefabricated wooden buildings, wood strips, ferrous and steel waste, and caulking compounds.

The main commodities imported to Estonia were mineral fuels, electrical equipment, machinery and mechanical appliances, transport equipment, and base metals and articles of base metal. The biggest increases occurred in the imports of mineral fuels, incl. oils imported for processing, motor fuel and electricity (up by nearly 1.5 billion euros), base metals and articles of base metal (up by 543 million euros) and transport equipment, incl. motor cars (up by 487 million euros).  

The top partner countries for Estonia’s imports of goods were Finland, Russia and Germany. The biggest rise was recorded in imports from Russia, Finland and Germany. There were greater imports of mineral fuels and fertilisers from Russia, greater imports of electricity and motor fuels from Finland, and bigger imports of motor cars, miscellaneous machinery and industrial equipment from Germany.

In December 2021, Estonia’s exports of goods amounted to 1.7 billion euros and imports to 1.9 billion euros. The rise in exports was mainly due to the exports of mineral fuels and wood and articles of wood. Imports were mainly boosted by the imports of mineral fuels, metals, and raw materials and products of chemical industry. The top partner countries were Finland, Latvia and the USA for exports, and Finland, Latvia and Lithuania for imports.

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

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