Press release 19/10/2020
In August 2020 the Basque Country’s exports fell by 17.1%, while imports fell by 26.2%
In the year-to-date, exports have fallen by 21.2%; however, there is still a positive trade balance of nearly 3,000 million euros and the coverage rate has risen to 128.5%
According to Eustat data, in August 2020 exports of goods from the Basque Country (accounting for 1,279.1 million euros) were down 17.1% compared to August 2019. Imports stood at 1,095.8 million euros, having fallen by 26.2%. This has resulted in a positive trade balance of 183.3 million euros, which is 125.7 million euros more than that registered in August 2019.
Energy products recorded a higher than average decrease in terms of both exports and imports. Exports fell by 60.4% (59.5 million euros), which, combined with the decrease of 14.1% (204.3 million euros) in non-energy exports, meant that exports as a whole registered a total decrease of 263.7 million euros.
The direct nature of the relationship between imports and exports of energy products explains why energy imports were also down by 58.6% (303.6 million euros). For their part, non-energy imports were also down, albeit to a lesser extent (8.9%).
Bizkaia was the worst-performing province, with a 22.6% drop in exports. This was due to the decrease in both non-energy exports (-85.7 million euros) and energy exports (-60.1 million euros). This decline was mostly concentrated in Mineral & Energy Products (-59.8%, down 60.9 million euros), Metals & Manufactured (-24.8%, down 41.5 million euros) and Transport Material (-31.4%, down 27.6 million euros), all of which were down in comparison to the same period in 2019.
In Álava, exports fell by 17.2% as a result of the 43.1% decline (-42.3 million euros) in Transport Material and the 29.0% decline (-22 million euros) in Metals & Manufactured.
With a decrease of just 11.2%, Gipuzkoa performed better than the other provinces: this decline was chiefly due to the 49.7% decrease (-13.5 million euros) in Plastics & Rubber and the 21.2% decrease (-31.8 million euros) in the Transport Materials.
The Basque Country’s five biggest customers in August were France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Belgium, together accounting for 46.2% (591 million euros) of total exports. Four of these belong to the EU27, which accounts for 62.4% of exports. This percentage would have been 69.5% for the former EU28.
Exports to Belgium increased by 39.5%, to Portugal by 8.9% and to the Netherlands by 2.0%; however, exports to France and Italy were down by 11.7% and 19.8%, respectively. Moreover, exports to Germany fell by 31.5%, while exports to the United Kingdom were down by 55.7%. Sales to the United States decreased by 32.1%, along with those to China (-9.9%) and Mexico (-12.4%).
In August, over half (52.2%) of all imports came from the EU27. This percentage would have been 54.1% for the erstwhile EU28. In terms of positive growth, the standout European countries included Norway, with an increase of 135.1%; Sweden, up by 22.4%; Belgium, up by 11.3%; and Ireland, up by 5.3%. At the opposite end of the scale were the United Kingdom, with a decrease of 70.9%; France, down by 17.1%; Germany, down by 15.3%; and the Netherlands, down by 13.7%. Outside Europe, there were fewer imports from the United States (-37.1%) and Mexico (-39:2%); however, more goods were imported from Brazil (+183.5%) and China (+0.5%).
Products traded in August 2020
The analysis of the different areas of export activity (A86) for August 2020 revealed notable growth (13.6%) in the largest export category, General Use Machinery. This was also the only major category to register growth, as the others all experienced declines, including the categories with the greatest volume of exports. These declines ranged from -8.0% (Metal Products) to -11.6% (Electrical Material & Equipment), -21.6% (Other Transport Material), -26.6% (Motor Vehicles) and -33.3% (Iron & Steel Products).
A more detailed examination reveals that, in August, the ten largest customs duty groups accounted for 33.8% of exports, with a combined value of 432.7 million euros. The following groups stood out, having recorded increases of varying magnitude compared to the same period in 2019: Railway or Tramway Vehicle Parts (+492.8%, up by 55.8 million euros compared to August 2019); Lifts, Escalators, Transporters, etc. (+101.9%, up by 12.3 million euros); Electrical Transformers, Static Converters & Inductors (+98.9%, up by 10.9 million euros); and Other Cast Iron or Steel Articles (+84.6%, up by 12.5 million euros). At the other end of the scale, declines were recorded in Refined Petroleum Oils (-60.3%, down by 45.1 million euros), Iron or Non-Alloy Steel Sections (-38.3%, down by 13.2 million euros), and Vehicle Parts and Accessories (-10.5%, down by 13.1 million euros). However, despite the year-on-year decrease suffered by this last customs duty group, it still accounted for 8.8% of total exports (112.4 million euros) in August 2020. Although this analysis would not be complete without mentioning the steep drop (-50.2%) recorded in the category of Passenger Cars with Fewer than 10 Seats, an examination of the 25 largest groups reveals that, as a whole, the groups connected to the vehicle sector grew by 9.6% (+23.5 million euros) compared to August 2019.
The analysis of the four largest areas of import activity (A86) revealed that the largest, Extraction & Petroleum Industries (15.0% of the total), saw a decrease of 62.2% compared to August 2019, while declines were also recorded for Iron & Steel Products (-19.3%) and General Use Machinery (-14.9%). Conversely, the figure for Manufacture of Motor Vehicles increased by 4.9%.
In terms of customs duty groups, the largest of these groups, Petroleum Oils or Oils Obtained from Bituminous Minerals (accounting for 13.6% of the total), fell by 57.5% compared to August 2019. This pattern was also observed in four of the ten largest customs duty groups, including Refined Petroleum Oils, which was down by 35.7%. However, there was strong growth in Spark-Ignition Reciprocating Piston and Rotary Engines (+394.0%) and Soya Beans, Whether or Not Broken, which grew by 58.7% (28.9 million euros’ worth of imports).
Over the first eight months of 2020, the Basque Country recorded a positive balance of 2,928.4 million euros in terms of foreign trade in goods
During the first eight months of the year, the Basque Country’s exports fell by 21.2% compared to the same period in 2019. This translates into a decrease of 3,543.5 million euros. The total amount of exports in this period was 13,197.7 billion, equivalent to a trade balance of 2,928.4 million euros. This figure is 293.6 million down on the equivalent for the same period in 2019, and represents a coverage rate of 128.5%.
Over the course of this period, more than 3,800 million euros’ worth of goods were exported by each of the three provinces, led by Bizkaia with 5,031.1 million and followed by Gipuzkoa with 4,353.7 million and Álava with 3,812.8 million. Compared to the equivalent period for 2019, significant decreases were recorded by the three provinces in terms of total exports. Gipuzkoa headed the list with a fall of 23.2%, followed by Bizkaia with 20.5% and Álava with 19.6%.
The ranking for these first eight months of 2020 placed Germany as the prime recipient of Basque exports, accounting for 17.1% (2,256.9 million euros) of total exports. After Germany came France (15.5%, or 2,051.9 million euros), the United States (6.9%, or 914.0 million euros) and the United Kingdom (6.1%, or 803.0 million euros). Between them, these four countries accounted for almost 50% of Basque exports for this period.
Cumulative imports for the Basque Country as a whole during the period in question amounted to 10,269.3 million euros. The year-on-year comparison of this figure revealed that it is 3,249.9 million euros down on the equivalent for the same period in 2019.
The ten most exported products (customs duty groups) during the first eight months of 2020 accounted for 39.0% of all exports, reaching a total of 5,140.9 million euros. Of these groups, only one recorded an increase on the previous year: namely, Railway or Tramway Vehicle Parts, which grew by 29.5% (41.1 million euros) compared to the same period in 2019. All of the other groups recorded lower figures than the equivalent period for 2019. Most of these decreases were in excess of 100 million euros, while the three groups pertaining to the vehicle sector recorded decreases of more than 350 million euros: specifically, Passenger Cars with Fewer than 10 Seats fell by 24.3% (-359.3 million euros), Vehicle Parts and Accessories fell by 30.0% (-360.3 million euros) and Diesel and Electric Motor Units for Railway Tracks and Motorised Trams fell by 61.9% (-428.5 million euros). A considerable downturn (-30.8%, down by 267.9 million euros) was also registered in Refined Petroleum Oils.
Cumulative imports for the Basque Country as a whole during the period in question amounted to 10,269.3 million euros. Comparing this figure in year-on-year terms, we see that it is 3,249.9 million euros down on the equivalent for the same period in 2019. This decrease of 24.0% is largely due to the fact that the province of Bizkaia (with cumulative imports of 5,705.3 million euros) registered a downturn of 27.7% (-2,189.9 million euros) compared to the same period in 2019. Imports also decreased in Gipuzkoa (-20.9%, down by 605.1 million euros) and Álava (-16.6%, down by 454.9 million euros), with the value of imports in these two provinces standing at 2,286.6 and 2,277.4 million euros, respectively.
Imports of Energy Products fell by 43.7%, while those of Non-energy Products were down 16.8%.
So far this year, the Basque Country’s foreign trade in goods has produced a positive balance of 2,928.4 million euros. Although this is 293.6 million euros less than the equivalent figure for the same period of 2019, it has enabled the Basque Country to maintain a positive coverage rate; in fact, the rate has increased from 123.8% to 128.5%.
For further information:
Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.es Tel: 945 01 75 62