The authorities admitted that the foreign trade balance slumped due to the cessation of “solvents” export.
The Ministry of Economy observes the increased negative tendencies in the country's balance of foreign trade in September. They were caused by the cessation of export of solvents and lubricants, the reduced export of oil products and potassium chloride, reads the analytical report on the results of the country's social and economic development for nine months released by the Economy Ministry.
”The general decline in export of goods (in September) in comparison with August was $402.3 million or 11.1% due to the following factors: a considerable reduction in export of solvents and lack of export of lubricants; oil products: a decrease was 14.6% (including a 35.2% decrease of biodiesel export); potash fertilisers: export continues to decline since May, the physical volumes fell by 28.5% in comparison with those in August,”Interfax news agency quotes the report.
The Ministry of Economy notes a 9.8% decrease in import (by $388.8 tonnes) in September in comparison with August. The key factors were a 6-fold reduction in oil import (in comparison with the average monthly import from January to July). Besides, oil import fell by 16% in September in comparison with that in August. The ministry says the reduction in oil import can be explained by a 13% decrease in supply prices for Belarus from $472.1 per tonne in August to $411.6 in September. The physical volume of import fell only by 4%. The ministry noticed a 5% decrease in natural gas import in September in comparison with August.
The Ministry of Economy says the above mentioned facts result in the “grow of negative tendencies: the export is decreasing, the monthly negative balance is growing”. The negative balance of foreign trade in goods and services was $154.6m in September, which is twice as much as that in August. Reasons of the current situation are in the trade in goods – the negative balance of foreign trade in goods amounted to $358m, the ministry says.
