Trade deficit reaches N$4.5 billion – Stats Agency
The country’s trade balance experienced a deficit of N$4.5 billion,during October, Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) Statistician General, Alex Shimuafeni revealed in the latest trade statistics released on Tuesday.
This figure marks an increase compared to the N$3.3 billion recorded in September 2023 and the N$2.2 billion deficit noted in October 2022.
According to Shimuafeni, a comprehensive breakdown of Namibia’s trade relations unveils South Africa as the prominent partner, leading both in exports and imports. October 2023’s export composition primarily comprised minerals like uranium, non-monetary gold, petroleum oils, and precious stones (diamonds), with fish standing as the sole non-mineral product among the top five exported goods.
The top five export markets accounted for 71.3% of total exports with South Africa accounting for 25.8
of exports, China (19.9%) and Botswana (105), Zambia, and Spain 9.2% and 6.5%, respectively.
Meanwhile, Shimuafeni said the import basket was dominated by petroleum oils, motor vehicles for goods transportation, ‘civil engineering and contractors’ equipment’, motor vehicles for personal transportation and inorganic chemical elements.
During the review period, re-exports faced a decline of 3.2% month-on-month and a substantial 27% year-on-year. The re-exported items mainly included petroleum oils, precious stones (diamonds), and ‘Copper and articles of copper’.
Shimuafeni noted that the commodity focus for the month revealed Namibia imported fresh or chilled potatoes valued at N$21 million during the review month.
