Namibia’s foreign trade deficit expanded by 68% y/y to NAD9.9bn ($770.5mn) in the second quarter, data from Namibia Statistics Agency showed.
The country’s exports grew 2.3% q/q to NAD13.9bn in Q2, while imports soared 22% y/y to NAD23.8bn.
Compared to Q2 2014, Namibia’s exports plummeted 39% and imports dropped 20%, resulting in a 42% expansion of the trade gap.
Diamonds remained Nabia’s top export commodity in Q2, accounting for 38.4% of total export revenues, followed by fish with a 13.1% share, copper cathodes with 7.5%, and copper ores also with 7.5%.
The main import commodity were mineral fuels and oils, contributing 20% to total imports, followed by vehicles with a 10.8% share.
The Bank of Namibia has hiked its main repo rate by a total of 100bp since June 2014 in a bid to contain a persistently strong growth in instalment credit, used predominantly for purchase of unproductive imported luxury goods, chiefly cars, that put pressure on the country’s international reserves. Imports of vehicles fell 6.4% y/y to ZAR2.57bn in Q2.
Botswana remained Namibia’s main export market in Q2, with a share of 25.3%, followed by South Africa with 19.4%, and Switzerland with 9.2%.
South Africa remained the main importer into the country with a 65.5% share of total imports, followed by China with 8.7%, and India with 2.9%.
External trade, NAD mn | Q2 2015 | Q1 2015 | Q2 2014 | y/y change | q/q change |
Total exports (fob) | 13 911 | 13 602 | 22 730 | -38.8% | 2.3% |
Total imports (cif) | 23 764 | 19 464 | 29 673 | -19.9% | 22.1% |
TRADE BALANCE | -9 853 | -5 862 | -6 943 | 41.9% | 68.1% |
Source: Namibia Statistics Agency |
South Africa's main bourse, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), has amended some listing requirements to make it easier for smaller firms to raise capital and meet compliance costs. The ... more
Petrofac has been awarded a $350mn technical services contract by Equatorial Guinea's state oil company to support its operations in offshore Block B when it takes over the asset from ExxonMobil (US) ... more
Leaders of Namibia's Nama ethnic group have rejected a proposal by national port authority Namport to expand a facility on Shark Island – a heritage site sacred to the community – to facilitate ... more