During 2019, general merchandise exports totaled Ch$4.16 billion, 2.7% less than reported in 2018, a decrease that is explained by the reduction in coffee, banana and zinc sales.
Agro-industrial activity reported exports of $2,170.9 million, $142.9 million less than in 2018, mainly because of the decline in coffee exports by $168.5 million (15.1%), this result is associated with increased global supply of the grain, reported the Central Bank of Honduras (BCH).
From January to October 2019, Honduras' foreign sales totaled $3,502 million, 4.8% less than in the same period of 2018.
The drop-in exports derives from the decline in shipments abroad of goods such as coffee, bananas, palm oil and zinc, which were affected in part by lower international prices. However, there was an increase in the export value of melons and watermelons, soaps and used gold accessories.
Consistent with the behavior recorded since the beginning of the year, from January to September 2019 Honduran companies sold abroad $3.247 million, 7% less than reported in the same period of 2018.
From the Central Bank of Honduras report:
General merchandise exports reached a value of US$3,247.4 million at the end of September 2019, lower by 7.1% (US$246.7 million) year on year.
Consistent with the behavior recorded in recent months, from January to August 2019 Honduran companies sold abroad $2.949 million, 8% less than reported in the same period of 2018.
The downward trend registered in August is due to the reduction in external sales of coffee, paper and cardboard, bananas and zinc, according to the report of the Central Bank of Honduras.
Lower foreign sales of coffee, paper and cardboard, bananas and gold explain the 8% decrease in accumulated exports from January to July 2019, compared to the same period in 2018.
Up to July 2019, exports of agro-industrial products worth $1,439.9 million were recorded, $130.9 million less than that observed in the same period of the previous year, behavior mostly attributed to the deterioration in coffee exports ($128.2 million), as a consequence of the 12.6% decrease in the international average price, together with a decrease of 1.4% in volume, according to an official report.
In the first five months of the year, Honduran exports totaled $1,914 million, 9% less than reported in the same period of 2018.
From January to May 2019, as a result of general merchandise trade transactions abroad, a deficit of $2,272.4 million was generated, $142.3 million more than the accumulated in the same period of 2018, informed the Central Bank of Honduras.
In the first quarter of the year Honduran exports totaled $1.506 million, 10% less than reported in the same period of 2018.
From the Central Bank of Honduras report:
The lower foreign sales of coffee, gold and bananas, because of the fall in international prices, determined the reduction of 10.3% (US$173.1 million) observed up to April 2019 in the exports of general merchandise compared to what was reported in the same period of the previous year, reaching a total value of US$1,505.9 million. This was partially compensated by the dynamism in foreign sales of melons and watermelons and shrimp.
During the first two months of the year, the trade balance recorded a $914 million deficit, resulting in a 24.3% increase over the $735 million reported for the same period in 2018.
Up to February 2019, the general merchandise trade balance registered a $914.2 million deficit, $178.8 million higher than the accumulated in the same period of 2018, a change explained by the 14.6% drop in exports ($124 million) and a 3.5% increase in imports ($54.8 million), according to a report by the Central Bank of Honduras.
During the first month of the year, the trade balance recorded a deficit of $473 million, resulting in a 10.7% increase over the $427 million reported in January 2018.
In January 2019, the general merchandise trade balance registered a deficit of $472.5 million, $45.4 million higher than that recorded in the same month of 2018, as a result of: imports that totaled $823 million ($15.8 million less than those of January 2018), compared to exports that reflected a value of $350.5 million ($61.2 million lower than those of the same month of the previous year), informed the Central Bank of Honduras (BCH).
Last year, the trade balance registered a deficit of $6.122 million, resulting in a 19% increase over the $5.149 million reported in 2017.
From the Central Bank of Honduras report:
At the end of 2018, FOB exportations of general merchandise accumulated a value of US$4,373.2 million, lower by 3.6% (US$162.6 million) regarding the shown in 2017, mainly because of the decrease in sales of coffee, palm oil, sugar, gold and shrimp; behavior fundamentally associated to the decrease experienced in international prices.
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.
Between January and November 2018, the trade balance recorded a deficit of $5.540 million, 18% more than the $4.683 million recorded in the same period of 2017.
The Central Bank of Honduras reported that "... At the end of November 2018, the trade balance recorded a deficit of US$5,540.4 million, higher by US$857.5 million than that recorded in the same period of the previous year.
Between January and October of this year, sales abroad totaled $3.785 million, registering a decrease of almost 3% compared to the total accumulated in the same period of 2017.
The Central Bank of Honduras reported that in the first ten months of the year the value of exports totaled US$3,784.6 million, showing a 2.8% decrease (US$107.9 million) compared to October 2017, evolution basically related to the reduction in sales of coffee, palm oil, used gold accessories and shrimp, partly reduced by greater external shipments of paper and cardboard, zinc and plastic and their manufactures.
Between January and September of this year, sales abroad totaled $3,499 million, registering a decrease of almost 3% compared to the cumulative figure for the same period in 2017.
The Central Bank of Honduras reported that by the third quarter of 2018, FOB exports of general merchandise totaled US$3,499.2 million, lower by 2.8% (US$101.6 million) compared to September 2017, mostly because of a decrease in sales of coffee, palm oil, used gold accessories and shrimp; a result that was partially balanced by the increase in external shipments of paper and cardboard, zinc and plastic and their manufactures.
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"]