Azerbaijan's foreign trade surplus hits $7.5bn

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan’s foreign trade surplus amounted to $7.5 billion in January-October 2021, the State Customs Committee has reported.

During the first 10 months of the year, the country's trade turnover amounted to $26.1 billion. Of the total turnover, export amounted to $16.8 billion or 64.3 percent, while import was $9.3 billion or 35.6 percent, resulting in a surplus of $7.5 billion.

Moreover, legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in the country carried out trade operations with partners in 185 countries.

In terms of export, the EU countries accounted for $9.7 billion or 57.6 percent, the CIS countries for $1.4 billion or 8.5 percent, and other countries for $5.6 billion or 33.7 percent of the country's total export. 

As to the import, the CIS countries accounted for $2.2 billion or 24.3 percent, the EU countries accounted for $1.7 billion or 18.9 percent and other countries for $5.2 billion for 56.6 percent of the country's imports during the reported period.

Furthermore, 637,066 tons of cargo worth $562.5. million were transported by sea, 5.7 million tons worth $2.4 billion by railway, and 3.8 million tons worth $7.4 billion of cargo by car. Some 57,997 tons of cargo worth $1.1 billion were transported by air in January-October.

In the structure of exports, the main volume came from products of the oil and gas sector with 87.8 percent, while the non-oil and gas sector amounted to 12.1 percent of the total export volume.

Additionally, during the reported months, Azerbaijan's main export transactions were with Italy ($6.6 billion), Turkey ($2 billion),  Croatia ($751.2 million), Russia ($696.9 million) and Israel ($618 million).

Azerbaijan's main import transactions during the first 10 months of the year were with Russia with $1.6 billion, Turkey with $1.4 billion, China with $1.3 billion, Germany with $530.6 million, and the U.S. with $365.7 million.