Coronacrisis: Ukraine cuts exports, imports of goods

Ukraine's State Customs Service says imports of goods in 2020 shrank by 10.3%, or US$6.2 billion, to US$54.2 billion against 2019, while the exports declined by 1.7%, or US$0.85 billion, to US$49.2 billion.

Read alsoUkraine's trade deficit more than halves in 2020 – envoyTrade turnover in January-December 2020 stood at US$103.4 billion. At the same time, imports have exceeded exports by US$5 billion, the agency's press service said on January 12.

"The major exporters of goods to Ukraine are China (US$8.3 billion), Germany (US$5.1 billion) and Russia (US$4.6 billion). In total, Ukrainian exports to China stood at US$7.1 billion, Poland – at US$3.3 billion, and Russia – at US$2.7 billion," the report said.

Ukraine's TOP 3 major export staples are as follows: grain (worth US$9.4 billion), ferrous metals (US$7.7 billion), and sunflower oil (US$5.8 billion).

Imports include mineral fuels, oil and petroleum products (US$8 billion); machinery, equipment and mechanical devices (US$6.1 billion); and means of land transport (US$5.5 billion).

Background

• Imports of goods to Ukraine over 11 months of 2020 amounted to US$48.4 billion, which was 10.8%, or US$5.9 billion, down the figure reported y-o-y, while exports of Ukrainian goods decreased by 3.5%, or by US$1.6 billion, to US$44.3 billion.
• The deficit of Ukraine's foreign trade in goods and services in 2019 totaled US$3.633 billion, which was 41.2% down from the deficit reported in 2018, according to the State Statistics Service.
• In 2019, the deficit in foreign trade in goods alone increased by 8.8%, to US$10.723 billion.