In 2019, exports of goods are estimated to total nearly $11.526 million, barely 2% higher than reported in the previous year, and far from the 6% increase recorded in 2018.
According to estimates by the Ministry of Foreign Trade, foreign sales of services registered greater dynamism last year, since between 2018 and 2019, they went from Ch$9,090 million to Ch$9,565 million, equivalent to a 5% increase.
The outlook for the country's manufacturing industry is unfavorable, since in the first four months of the year companies outside the free trade zone reported a 5% year-on-year drop in their sales abroad.
Consistent with the behavior reported since the beginning of the year, in the first four months’ sales of Costa Rican goods abroad remained stagnant, totaling $3,693 million, just 0.2% above the figure reported in April 2018.
During the first three months of the year, sales of Costa Rican goods abroad totaled $2.757 million, just 0.5% above the $2.744 million reported as of March 2018.
The most updated data of the Foreign Trade Promoter (Procomer) specify that from January to March of this year the exports of companies in free trade zones registered a 12% year-on-year increase, and in the case of foreign sales of products in final regime fell 9%.
In the third quarter of 2018, Central American exports totaled $23,702 million, reporting an increase of less than 1% compared to the same period in 2017, because of the lower dynamism of sales from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
According to the Central American Trade Monitor for the Third Quarter 2018, prepared by the Secretariat of Central American Economic Integration (SIECA), imports of goods in the region totaled $54,665 million from July to September last year, recording a 6.5% increase over the same period in 2017.
Because of the performance of the manufacturing sector, last year the country reported $11.312 million in foreign sales, 6% more than in 2017.
The latest report from Costa Rica's Foreign Trade Promoter (Procomer), details that last year exports of precision and medical equipment represented 29% of total sales and recorded an 18% increase compared to what was reported in 2017.
Based on sales of medical and precision equipment, between January and October of this year the country reported $8.908 million in exports, 7% more than in the same period in 2017.
According to the Foreign Trade Promoter of Costa Rica (Procomer), in the first ten months of the year, medical equipment and precision exports represented 29% of total sales and registered an 18% increase compared to what was reported in the same period in 2017.
Petroleum products, iron and steel, food and pharmaceutical products, headed last year's purchases from companies in the South American nation from Central American countries.
Figures from the Central American-Ecuador Trade Information System complied by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData: [GRAPHIC caption = "Click to interact with the graph"]
Last year, mineral fuels, plastic articles and food led the commercial exchange between Peruvian and Central American companies.
Figures from the Central American-Peru Trade Information System complied by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData: [GRAPHIC caption = "Click to interact with the graph"]
Plastic articles, pharmaceutical products and food preparations last year led the commercial exchange between companies from the Caribbean nation and Central American countries.
Figures from the information system of Commerce between Central America and the Dominican Republic, compiled by the Trade Intelligence Area of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with graphic"]
Fuels, plastic goods and pharmaceutical products led last year's imports made by Central American companies in the South American nation.
Figures from the information system of Commerce between Central America and Colombia, from the Trade Intelligence Area of CentralAmericaData:[GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with graphic"]
Due to the performance of the manufacturing sector, from January to September of this year the country reported $8.473 million in foreign sales, 6% more than that recorded in the same period of 2017.
According to figures from the Foreign Trade Promoter of Costa Rica (Procomer), in the first nine months of the year exports of precision and medical equipment represented 28% of total sales, and registered an increase of 14% compared to what was reported in the same period in 2017.
Because of sales of medical and precision equipment, exports between January and August 2018 increased by 173% compared to the same period in 2015.
According to figures from the Foreign Trade Promoter (Procomer), in the first eight months of 2015 the sales of the Central American nation to Japan totaled $59 million, a figure that has practically tripled, as reported in the same period of this year, when exports reached $162 million.
Trade in goods and services between the countries of the region amounted to $4.792 billion during the second quarter of the year, 3% more than in the same period of 2017.
Central America's total exports reached USD 16,299.7 million in the second quarter of 2018 and increased by 1.7% over the same period last year. 29.4% of exports went to the Central American market, while the remaining 70.6% went to third markets.
From January to July 2018, sales abroad from free zones in Costa Rica grew by 8%, well below the 12% increase registered in the first seven months of 2017.
According to data from the Foreign Trade Promotion Office (Procomer) between the first seven months of 2016 and the same period in 2017, exports of products in free zones went from $2.874 billion to $3.208 billion, representing an increase of 11.6%.
From January to June of this year 35,157 new and used vehicles came into the country, registering a fall of 17% compared to the first half of 2017.
According to figures from the Ministry of Finance, between the first half of this year and the same period in 2017, the number of new vehicles imported into the country went down by 14%, going from 28,203 units to 24,395.