An increase in non- traditional exports offset the fall in foreign sales of traditional products.
According to the report entitled "Trends in Foreign Trade in 2013 in El Salvador" prepared by the Ministry of Economy (Minec) exports in 2013 totaled $5.491 billion, an increase of 2.8 % compared to 2012, when the total figure was $5.339 billion .
$3.908 billion worth of non-traditional products were exported last year, while in 2012 the figure was $3.765 billion. Exports of traditional products were down $42 million, totaling $424.9 million in 2013.
During the first ten months of 2013 the difference between imports and exports grew by 8.5%, reaching $4.4142 billion.
From a press release issued by the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador:
Salvadoran exports up to October 2013 amounted to $4.6659 billion, an increase of $161.7 million compared to the same period in 2012, showing a growth rate of 3.6% a year, according to the Department of Studies and Economic Statistics at the Central Reserve Bank of El Salvador.
FOB exports of general goods registered growth of 10.5%, while CIF imports of general merchandise increased by 5.4%.
Summary of the Report on General Merchandise Foreign Trade, by the Central Bank of Honduras:
FOB exports of general goods recorded a growth of 10.5% in December 2012, attributed to an increase of $305 million in exports of non-traditional products and $113.3 million in traditional products.
Meanwhile the purchase of consumer goods grew by only 9%, which is attributed to the higher added value in domestic production.
Laprensa.com.ni reports that "Nicaragua’s imports have grown at a slower pace than its exports, which helps to stem the growth of the trade deficit. Between January and November last year the country invested $5.307 billion in the purchase of goods and products, representing a rise of 11.7 percent compared to the same period in 2011. "
During the first five months of 2012, the Colon Free Zone in Panama registered a trade surplus of $870.2 million.
A press release from the Ministry of Economy and Finance of Panama reads:
During the first five months of 2012, the Colon Free Zone registered a trade surplus of 877.2 million balboas ($877.2 million), after recording re-exports worth 6.6624 billion balboas ($6.6624 billion) and imports worth 5.7852 billion balboas ($5.7852 billion), as reported by the Department of Economics and Social Analysis of MEF through a report.
Foreign sales of Honduran bananas during the first two months of 2012 exceeded by $25 million sales in the first two months of last year.
A 'Trade Report' by the Central Bank of Honduras said that banana exports brought in revenues of $76.2 million in the first two months of 2012, surpassing the $52 million in the same period last year.
Therefore, bananas remains the second largest generator of foreign exchange, just behind coffee, which meant income of $398 million in the period.
Imports grew, but so did exports, giving stability to the trade deficit.
Between January and August, exports and imports grew by 26% and 24% respectively compared to the same period last year.
The data is the result of the dynamism experienced by Guatemalan foreign trade, which driven by strong domestic economic activity, is growing significantly.
In the first six months of the year accumulated trade activity totaled $15,799 million, which is 41.4% higher than in the same period in 2010.
July was the busiest month, totaling $2,726 million, an increase of 73.4% compared to same month in 2010.
According to an article in Prensa.com: "Medicines and raw materials, textiles and garments, electronic products, cologne and perfume products represented over 50% of business in July.".
In the month of September $ 6,284 million were exported, 16% higher than the same period of 2009.
The items which determined the increase are oil, sugar, cardamom, bananas and coffee.
"According to Banguat the total foreign sales of major products accounted for 28.9 percent, equivalent to U.S. $ 1 billion 815.6 million. Exports to Central America were 28.1 percent (U.S.
In the first half of the year both Guatemala's exports and imports showed growth.
According to Guatemala's central bank (Banguat), exports increased 8.1%. Meanwhile as of June this year imports already totaled $150 million compared with $262 for the whole of 2009.
"These figures from Banguat suggest that in the first half of 2009 there was a drop in imports and exports between Guatemala and Honduras, probably caused by the world economic crisis, more than the Honduran political situation and military coup staged on 28 June 2009," reports Sigloxxi.com.
In the first quarter of 2010, exports grew 18% when compared to the same period of 2009.
Data from the U.S. Commerce Department shows that Guatemalan imports also increased 9%.
Carolina Castellanos, head of AmCham, the Guatemalan-American Chamber of Commerce, explained that the leader of this rebound was the textile industry, which had “fallen to the ground” in 2009, reported Sigloxxi.com.
In November 2009 exports rose 16% and imports 4%, when compared to the same month of 2008.
It is the first month in the year in which year-on-year variation is positive both in exports as in imports.
"The Central Bank informed that [in November] the country imported $1.1 billion worth of goods, ... and exported $764 million...", reported Nacion.com.