Press Release 15/06/2023

FOREIGN TRADE STATISTICS (ECOMEX). April 2023

Exports from the Basque Country were down 9.1% in April 2023

The cumulative total for the first four months of the year revealed an increase of 13.2% in exports and 5.3% in imports

In April 2023, exports of goods from the Basque Country (2,419 million euros) registered a drop of 9.1% compared to the same month of the previous year. This trend was seen in both energy products (-46.4%) and non-energy products (-6.5%). With these data, the balance for the first four months of 2023 closed with a 13.2% rise in exports.

The import flow (2,238 million) also saw a decrease of 9.7%, which was evident in both energy imports (-15.3%) and non-energy imports (-7.1%). However, in terms of weight (tonnes), only non-energy imports recorded a decline (-3.7%), given that energy imports were up 34.9%, going from 1,013 million in April 2022 to 1,366 million in April 2023. The balance for the first four months of the year showed a 5.3% increase in imports.

This month, there was a positive trade balance of 180.7 million euros and a coverage rate of 108.1%, all measured in nominal terms.

Exports fell by 11.6% in Bizkaia and 14.3% in Gipuzkoa, while in Álava there was a small rise of 0.2%.

More than half of the goods exported from Álava this month consisted of “Transport Material” (53.1%), despite a slight year-on-year decrease of 1.4% (410 million in exports). Exports were also down in other customs duty groups, such as “Metals and articles thereof” (-4.6%) and “Chemical products” (-24.9%).

In Bizkaia, there was a drop in exports of “Mineral and energy products” (-45.7%), with 79 million less than in the same month of the previous year, “Metals and articles thereof” (-13.4%) and “Chemical products” (-24.8%). On the other hand, sales were up in “Fats and oils” (113.0%).

In Gipuzkoa, there were downturns in exports of “Metals and articles thereof” (30.8%), “Electrical equipment, machinery & devices” (16.5%), “Paper and articles thereof” (10%) and “Chemical products” (22.2%).

Source/destination countries, April 2023

In April 2023, five countries (Germany, France, the United States, the United Kingdom and Italy) were the Basque Country’s biggest customers, absorbing 51.2% (1,238 million) of the total exported. Three of these belong to the EU27, which accounts for 63.5%.

Exports to Germany this month stood at 378 million euros, with those of “Passenger cars with fewer than 10 seats” (89 million), “Goods transport vehicles” (67.3 million) and “Vehicle parts and accessories” (33.9 million) predominating, for a total of 400 different products.

673 types of products were sent to France, accounting for a total of 364 million euros. Standing out among these were “Vehicle parts and accessories” (28.3 million) and “New rubber tyres” (25.9 million).

The United States, with 179 million, came in third place, with the majority of exports in “Seamless tubes and hollow profiles made of iron or steel” (29.1 million), “Goods transport vehicles” (19.4 million) and “Biodiesel and mixtures thereof” (14 million), from a total of 345 different products.

The United Kingdom accounted for 176 million of total exports from the Basque Country, of which 17.2 million corresponded to “Iron or non-alloy steel sections”, 10.8 million to “New rubber tyres”, 10.4 million to “Turbo-reactors, turbo-propellers and other gas turbines, and their parts and components”, 9.4 million to “Goods transport vehicles” and 9 million to “Vehicle parts and accessories”.

Exports to Italy amounted to 141 million euros and this month’s transactions were dominated by “New rubber tyres” (10.6 million), “Diesel and electric motor units for railway tracks and motorised trams” (8.6 million) and “Vehicle parts and accessories” (7.4 million).

Exports to Russia fell by 69.3%, going from 11.7 million to 3.6 million, and primarily consisted of “Machines for washing, filling, sealing and labelling containers and packing machinery”, with 1.7 million euros, and “Vehicle parts and accessories”, with 0.6 million, for a total of 19 types of products exported.

This month, 47.6% of Basque imports came from the EU27. One of the standout countries in terms of imports was Germany (306 million), with imports consisting mainly of “Vehicle parts and accessories” (33.1 million) and “Internal combustion engines, diesel or semi-diesel”, with 32.1 million. It is also worth mentioning France, with 181 million, with the leading product in this case being “Remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel”, with 28.6 million for a total of 679 products, highlighting the wide variety of goods imported from this country. Mexico took third place with 164 million, of which 159 million corresponded to “Petroleum oils”. 160 million were imported from China, most notably “Electric accumulators and parts thereof” with 29.3 million. The Netherlands, with 150 million, was a major importer this month, especially of “Oils”, including “Refined petroleum oils” (29.7 million), “Oils and products derived from the distillation of coal tars at high temperatures: Benzol, Toluol, Xylol, Naphthalene, Phenol, etc.” (33.4 million) and “Palm oil” (16.8 million).

In the case of Russia, there was a rise of 173.7%, going from 28.9 million in April 2022 to 79 million in the same month of 2023. These imports primarily consisted of “Petroleum gas and other hydrocarbon gases” (73.1 million) and “Unwrought aluminium” (1.9 million).

This month, energy imports were distributed as follows: 277 million from America (40.9%), with 159 million coming from Mexico, 89 million from the United States and 29 million from Canada; 196 million from Europe (28.9%), of which 73 million came from Russia, 63 million from the Netherlands and 57 million from Norway; 119 million from Africa (17.6%), with 73 million coming from Angola and 46 million from Nigeria; and 86 million from Asia (12.6%), of which 68 million came from Kuwait and 17 million from India.

Products traded, April 2023

A more detailed look reveals that in April 2023 the ten main export duty groups accounted for 39.8% of exports, with a combined value of 963.4 million euros.

Of particular relevance within this set of products were “Passenger cars with fewer than 10 seats” (year-on-year variation rate of 5.4%), with 207.2 million in exports, 10.6 million more than in the same month of the previous year, “New rubber tyres” (15.1% and 114.3 million) and “Seamless tubes and hollow profiles made of iron or steel” (38.6% and 71.3 million). If we widen the scope of the analysis to include the top 25 positions in the export ranking, we can see significant growth rates in groups such as: “Electric transformers, static converters and inductors” (24.3 million) and “Plant or animal fats and oils for industrial technical use” (23.3 million). On the other hand, it should be pointed out that there was a considerable drop in sales of “Refined petroleum oils” (-57.8%), “Iron or non-alloy steel sections” (-34.5%), “Miscellaneous articles of iron or steel” (-23.2%) and, albeit to a lesser degree, “Vehicle parts and accessories” (-3.4% and 172 million) and “Goods transport vehicles” (-0.8% and 148.3 million).

In the case of imports, the largest customs duty group, “Petroleum oils or oils obtained from bituminous minerals” (15.8% of the total), registered a fall of 44.8%, 286.6 million less than in the same month of 2022, making a total of 352.6 million in imports. However, if we make the comparison in tonnes, this decrease was only 15.6%, given that imports fell from 861,945 tonnes in April 2022 to 727,570 tonnes in the same month of 2023. Conversely, there was significant growth in imports of “Refined petroleum oils” (513.1%), with 118 million in imports, primarily diesel and fuel, “Petroleum gas and other hydrocarbon gases” (16.7% and 164 million) and “Oils and products derived from the distillation of coal tars at high temperatures: Benzol, Toluol, Xylol, Naphthalene, Phenol, etc.”. Notable increases were also recorded for “Electric accumulators and parts thereof” (62.8%), “Glass containers for transport or packaging” (319.1%) and “Bran and residues from the milling of cereals and pulses” (13.9 million in imports).

ÁLAVA. Exports during April 2023

In Álava, exports grew by 0.2%, based on “Passenger cars with fewer than 10 seats” (up 4.7% with a total of 203.7 million in exports), “Seamless tubes and hollow profiles made of iron or steel” (50.0% and 64.3 million), “New rubber tyres” (37.5% and 46.8 million in exports) and “Glass containers for transport or packaging” (357.6% and 7.7 million).

BIZKAIA. Exports during April 2023

Exports from the province of Bizkaia were down 11.6%. “Refined petroleum oils” (-59.5% and 64.5 million), the customs duty group that has traditionally held first place in the export ranking for Bizkaia, was replaced this month by “New rubber tyres” (2.9% and 66.5 million). There were upturns in exports of “Plant or animal fats and oils for industrial technical use” (119.7% and 23.3 million), “Turbo-reactors, turbo-propellers and other gas turbines, and their parts and components” (38.7%) and “Electric transformers, static converters and inductors” (68.3%).

GIPUZKOA. Exports during April 2023

Exports from Gipuzkoa fell by 14.3%; of particular note among the main customs duty groups were the decreases registered in “Iron or non-alloy steel sections” (-36.4%), “Insulated electrical conduction wires and cables and optical fibre cables” (-35.5%), “Other iron or steel articles” (-35.3%) and “Diesel and electric motor units for railway tracks and motorised trams” (-14.1%). The most significant growth was seen in “Vehicle parts and accessories” (19.2% and 71.7 million in exports).

In the first four months of the year, exports increased by 13.2% and imports rose by 5.3%; the surplus reached 2,000 million euros

For the first four months of 2023 as a whole, and for exports from the Basque Country, a year-on-year increase of 13.2% was registered, which represented 1,323.3 million euros more than in the same period of the previous year. The total amount of exports for this period stood at 11,375.3 million euros; the greatest contribution to the export effort came from Bizkaia, with 4,292 million (37.7% of the total), followed by Álava (3,630.9 million) and Gipuzkoa (3,452 million).

Exports from Álava saw the highest year-on-year rise (23.3%), 686 million more than in 2022. In Gipuzkoa, exports rose by 12.8% (393 million more) and they were up 6% in Bizkaia (244.3 million more).

Considering the type of product exported, we can see that there was a decline in exports of “Energy products” (-20.8%), with 157.2 million less than in the same four-month period of the previous year. In contrast, “Non-energy products” were up 15.9% and exceeded the cumulative total for the same period of 2022 by 1,480.5 million.

You can find more information by accessing the foreign trade data search application Elkano

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tel.: 945 01 75 62