In the first nine months of the year exports totalled US$ 67.1 billion, which represents a record level, exceeding by almost US$ 4.4 billion the previous maximum value recorded for the same period in 2011. Imports amounted to US$ 64.5 billion, and also reached their best mark for the first nine months of a year.
Highlights
• Between January and September 2022, exports increased 15.2% year-on-year, explained by an increase in prices (18.9%), while quantities decreased (−3.2%).
• Imports grew 40.4% in the first nine months of the year, driven by higher prices and quantities of Fuels and lubricants, higher prices of Intermediate goods and higher quantities of Capital goods and their parts.
• The trade balance achieved a surplus at US$ 2.6 billion, US$ 9.7 billion less than the positive result of January-September 2021, resulting from the greater pace of growth of imports than exports.
• The three main partners, Brazil, China and the United States, absorbed as a whole 29.4% of the exports and supplied 53.4% of the imports in January-September 2022. In turn, the European Union concentrated 12.0% of shipments and 13.3% of purchases.
• The largest surpluses were in trade with Chile (US$ 3.1 billion), India (US$ 2.2 billion), the Netherlands (US$ 1.9 billion), Peru (US$ 1.6 billion) Vietnam (US$ 1.5 billion) and Indonesia (US$ 1.3 billion).
• The highest deficits were recorded with China (US$ 8.1 billion), United States (US$ 3.4 billion), Brazil (US$ 3.1 billion), Germany (US$ 1.5 billion) and Bolivia (US$ 1.4 billion).
• Highlights include increases in wheat exports (US$ 1.8 billion), crude oil (US$ 1.6 billion), maize (US$ 0.8 billion) and frozen boneless bovine meat (US$ 0.6 billion). The largest drop corresponds to soybeans (−US$ 1.1 billion).
• It is worth highlighting the increases in the export prices of all the products of the soybean complex: oil, 36.3%; biodiesel, 21.2%; beans, 16.7%; and flour, 10.2%. In relation to the quantities, those of beans (−50.5%), oil (−27.1%), flours and pellets (−13.9%) and biodiesel (−10.6%) decreased.
• Regarding imports, there stand out the highest purchases of diesel oil (US$ 2.8 billion), liquefied natural gas (US$ 1.5 billion), gaseous natural gas (US$ 0.6 billion), gasoline, excluding that for aviation (US$ 0.6 billion), and fuel oil (US$ 0.5 billion), while those of soybeans (−US$ 0.2 billion) and beef (−US$ 0.2 billion) decreased.
