After the setback in December, in January 2023, exports to non-EU countries grow again on a monthly basis; the growth is conditioned by the occasional transactions with a high impact (shipbuilding) recorded the previous month, net of which a more marked increase is estimated (+3.3%). In detail, in January 2023, Istat estimates a slight cyclical increase for exports (+0.7%) and a marked decrease for imports (-9.7%) for trade with non-EU27 countries.
For imports, down for the fifth consecutive month, the cyclical downturn derives above all from the contraction in energy purchases, which is favorably influenced by the drop in prices and volumes of natural gas imported in the gaseous state.
On an annual basis, the growth of exports accelerated again while imports recorded a decline for the first time after about two years, almost entirely explained by the decline in purchases of intermediate goods.