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Press release 05.03.12

FOREIGN TRADE OF THE BASQUE COUNTRY (ECOMEX) 4th QUARTER 2011

Exports from the Basque Country were up 24.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011

There was a drop in imports of 2.8 % over the same period.

Exports from the Basque Country posted a nominal rise of 24.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to EUSTAT data. They totalled 5803 million euros compared to 4649 million the previous year.

Total imports to the Basque Country registered a 2.8% nominal rise in the fourth quarter of the 2011 and totalled 3949 million euros. If only non-energy imports are considered, there was growth of 4.4% for the same period, valued at 2743 million euros.

Evolution of the foreign trade of the Basque Country. Fourth quarter of 2011. Thousands of euros

The net balance of exports less imports for the fourth quarter was positive and showed a surplus of 1854 million euros, with an export coverage rate compared to imports of 146.9%. However, if imported and exported energy products are excluded, the non-energy trade balance registered a surplus of 2133 million euros, up 565 million on the fourth quarter of 2010. The non-energy coverage rate for the period in question rose from 159.6% for 2010 to 177.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Evolution of the foreign trade of the Basque Country. Year-on-year growth rates

Exports from the Basque Country in the fourth quarter of 2011 to the European Union were up 34.4% on the same period of 2010. Amongst these, exports destined for France (86.4%), Germany (14.9%) and the United Kingdom (44.3%) stand out due to their volume and year-on-year growth. In the case of Italy (-10%) and Belgium (-2.9%) exports were negative. Outside the EU-27, special mention should be made of exports to Iran (287.2%), Mexico (55.8%), Venezuela (40.0%) and China (30.8%).

Imports from the European Union increased by 6%, with those from Germany (17.8%), Italy (13.5%) and Belgium (38.5%) standing out in terms of their volume and year-on-year growth, whereas imports from the United Kingdom were down (-4.9%). As regards the rest of the world, the highest growth was recorded in imports from India (342.7%), Iran (199.6%) the United States (121.5%) and Mexico (67.1%).

In terms of customs duty groups, and in relation to exports, Mineral Products stands out as the the most dynamic section within the most important groups, with growth of 104.8%, and it accounted for 16% of total exports during the quarter. The following stand out amongst the other important sections: Transport material, with growth of 25.7%, accounting for 20% of total exports and Electrical equipment with growth of 25.4%, accounting for 21% of exports.

Analysing imports, and focusing on the largest groups, decreases in Mineral Products, which dropped by -15.8% (30.5% of the total imports) and of Metals & Manufactured, with -6.2% (21% of the total) can be observed. From the other largest sections year-on-year growth in imports was especially noteworthy in Plastics & rubber (38.8%), Chemical products (38.2%) and Transport material (23.6%).

The largest year-on-year growth in exports took place in Bizkaia. This growth stood at 28.2% in the third quarter of 2011, with the highest being registered, above all, by the most important customs duty groups: Mineral products (106.3%), Metals & Manufactured (8.9%) and Plastics & Rubber (27.1%). On the other hand, Transport material fell slightly (-5.7%). Imports posted a drop of -7.9%, amongst which the customs duty groups Mineral products (-16.5), Metals & manufactured (8.7%) and Electrical equipment (-4.6%) stood out.

Exports from Gipuzkoa were up by 24.4% compared to the same period of the previous year. Said growth in exports from this province was mainly due to the good performance in sales of Transport material (46.2%), Electrical equipment (37.8%) and Metals & manufacturing (10.1%). As a whole, these three sections accounted for 83% of exports from this province. There was hardly any year-on-year change (0.5%) in imports, with uneven performance for the two main customs duty groups; there was an increase of 5.9% for Electrical equipment whilst Metals & Manufactured was down -10%.

Exports from Álava registered an increase of 19.7% in the fourth quarter of the year. Exports of Electrical equipment (36.8%), Transport material (26.8%) together with those of Plastics & rubber (21.9%) made the greatest contribution to export growth for the quarter. Imports to Álava were up by 14.3%. Of the most noteworthy import sections Electrical equipment grew 17.3%, and Metals & Manufactured did so by 4.8%.

Annual balance 2011

Exports from the Basque Country increased by 21,077 million euros in 2011, up 20.1% in relation to the previous year. In the same period, total imports also recorded growth of 12.1%. As a result of both flows, the export coverage rate over imports rose 8 points, going from 115% in 2010 to 123% in 2011. The surplus generated in 2011 stood at 3967 million euros, which was 1678 million euros more than the previous year.

The balance of non-energy products improved on the previous year, standing at 7599 million euros against 6079 million in 2010. Therefore, the coverage rate for non-energy products was up 7.3 points, going form 161.1% in 2010 to 168.4% in 2011.

In the Basque Country both exports and imports experienced higher growth than in the State as a whole. While State exports grew 15.4%, those from the Basque Country reached 20.1%. There was a similar situation in the case of imports, which registered growth of 9.6% at State level and 12.1% in our Community.

Taking into account the customs duty groups, in 2011 the highest growth amongst the largest groups was recorded by exports from Metals & manufacture(14.8%), Transport material (15.3%) and Electrical equipment (16.6%), three customs duty groups that accounted for 67% of our exports. The majority of the remaining sections also posted notable increases, with Mineral products and Plastics & rubber standing out for their size and importance, with rises of 55.9% and 37.6%, respectively.

In the case of imports, the majority of the sections experienced rises, amongst which Mineral productos (13.0%) and Metals & manufactured (13.5%) stood out, accounting for 58% of our imports. There was also growth of 37.7% in the Plastics & rubber section, and Electrical equipment stayed at the previous year’s levels, up 0.9%.

In 2011 as a whole, the highest growth in exports corresponded to Álava, with 29.6% annual growth, followed by Gipuzkoa, with 18.6% and Bizkaia, which posted a year-on-year increase of 15.9%. As far as imports were concerned, the three provinces showed significant growth, with Álava again being the province with the highest increase (16.9%), followed by Bizkaia (12.9%) and lastly by Gipuzkoa, which posted the smallest increase (6.4%).