In the most recent report from the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), it is revealed that Colombian exports have experienced a new decline in the month of March. According to the report, the country’s external sales reached US$3,830.7 million FOB, showing a significant decrease of 14.2% compared to the same period of the previous year.
This decline is mainly attributed to the decline in external sales of the group of fuels and extractive industry products, which suffered a drop of 15.5%. Fuels and industrial products worth US$1,911.9 million FOB were exported, with coal, coke and briquettes being the most affected products with a decrease of 46.1%.
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On the other hand, manufacturing exports were also affected, registering a drop of 16.0%, with sales of US$766.7 million FOB. Manufactured items, mainly classified according to material, and chemical and related products were the most affected, with decreases of 29.5% and 15.7% respectively.
In the agricultural, food and beverage sector, exports reached US$924.2 million FOB, representing a decrease of 6.2% compared to March 2023. The drop in exports of unroasted coffee, decaffeinated or not, and oil of palm and its fractions, together contributed 7.3 negative percentage points to this variation.
Another sector that experienced a significant decrease was “other sectors”, with a drop of 25.3%, mainly explained by the decline in non-monetary gold exports, which contributed 25.2 negative percentage points to the group’s variation. .
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During the period from January to March 2024, Colombian exports totaled US$11,262.9 million, registering a decrease of 9.4% compared to the same period of the previous year.
The United States remained the main destination for Colombian exports in March, with a 29.5% share in the total FOB value exported. They were followed in order by Panama, China, India, Mexico, the Netherlands and Ecuador.
This new drop in Colombian exports reflects a worrying outlook for the country’s economy, evidencing the need for strategies to boost external sales and mitigate negative impacts on the international market.