Trade balance deficit up almost 30 pct last year

Trade balance deficit went up almost 30 per cent last year, exceeding 12.95 billion euros, reads a press release of the National Institute of Statistics (INS) remitted on Friday to AGERPRES. 

"In 2017, exports and imports climbed 9.1 per cent, 12.2 per cent respectively, compared with 2016. FOB exports totalled 62.641 billion euros and CIF imports totalled 75.596 billion euros. Trade balance deficit (FOB/CIF) accounted for 12.955 billion euros in 2017, by 2.983 billion euros more than the figure recorded in 2016," shows the document. 

The value of intra-Community exchanges of goods (intra-EU28) exceeded 47.48 billion euros in 2017 in shippings and stood at 57.277 billion euros in imports, representing 75.8 per cent of total exports and total imports. 

In respect to extra-EU28 exchanges, they exceeded 15.16 billion euros in exports and 18.319 billion euros in imports, representing 24.2 per cent of total exports and total imports. 

In 2017, cars and transport equipment accounted for important weights in the structure of exports and imports were (46.4 per cent in exports and 37.3 per cent in imports) and other manufactured products (33.2 per cent exports and 30.9 per cent imports respectively). 

According to the INS, in December 2017, FOB exports exceeded 4.493 billion euros and CIF imports accounted for 6.103 million euros, resulting a deficit of 1.610 billion euros. 

Compared with December 2016, exports increased by 4.2 per cent in December 2017, and imports climbed 10.8 per cent.