According to Central Statistical Bureau data, in May this year the value of goods exports at current prices fell by 1.3% year on year, while the value of imports fell by 13.8%. The year-on-year decline in the value of exports and imports is still partly attributable to falling prices. The negative trade balance in May was 7.5%.

In May, the sharpest year-on-year declines were in the export value of cereals, as well as land vehicles and animal feed. More moderate falls were recorded in exports of miscellaneous chemical products, vegetables, and machinery and appliances.

Exports of mineral products, meanwhile, began to grow again after more than a year of decline. Rising exports of wood and wood products, oil seeds, animal and vegetable fats, and iron and steel also made a positive contribution to exports.

In May, exports to Latvia's main market – the EU countries – grew by 0.6% year on year. Export value grew most rapidly to Poland (machinery, electrical appliances), Estonia (iron and steel, vegetable products), Hungary (mineral products), the Czech Republic (aircraft and parts thereof, mineral products), Lithuania (mineral products, electrical appliances) and Finland (wood, miscellaneous chemical products). Exports to Sweden (miscellaneous chemical products, electrical appliances), Spain (cereals) and the Netherlands (vegetables), on the other hand, declined.

In May, exports to the CIS countries fell by 8%. Exports to Russia (beverages, pharmaceutical products) and Kyrgyzstan (electrical appliances) declined. Beverage exports still account for a large share of all exports to Russia; footwear, clothing and accessories, pharmaceutical products and other goods not subject to sanctions are also exported. Exports to Kazakhstan (pharmaceutical products), by contrast, grew.

Exports to the remaining countries also fell in May – by 5%. Within this group of countries, export value declined to Ukraine (mineral products, goods under unspecified codes), Senegal and Mozambique (to

both – cereals) and Turkey (vehicles). Export value grew, however, to the USA (wood, machinery), the United Kingdom and Egypt (to both – wood).

In May, the year-on-year fall in import value was significantly influenced by lower imports of aircraft and parts thereof, as well as land vehicles. Imports of mineral products, which have been shrinking since February 2023, also declined. More moderate falls were recorded in imports of machinery and appliances and of cereals. Imports of organic chemical compounds, rail transport equipment, and animal and vegetable fats, meanwhile, increased.

Overall, in the first five months of this year goods exports at current prices were 5.8% lower than a year earlier, while goods imports fell by 11.6 percent over the same period.

Export growth is expected to remain weak in the coming months; positive export growth could return in the second half of the year. Growth will continue to be constrained by external demand and geopolitical uncertainty. In this situation, it is essential that businesses keep looking for new supply options and markets for their goods.

https://www.em.gov.lv/lv/jaunums/maija-gada-griezuma-nedaudz-samazinajas-eksports-straujak-imports