Monstat’s preliminary data on foreign trade in the first five months show that Montenegrin exports are still dominated by electricity, while statisticians have calculated that there has been a drastic reduction in the traditional exports of aluminum and bauxite. The value of vehicle imports is 60.3% higher compared to the same period last year, while we spent EUR 275 million on food imports, which is 26% more than last year in the same period.
The total foreign trade of Montenegro in the first five months amounted to EUR 1.76 billion, which is 12.2 percent more compared to the same period last year. Exported goods are worth EUR 315.7 million, which is 6.1 percent less compared to the comparative period. Imports were 17.2 percent higher and amounted to EUR 1.44 billion.
The coverage of imports by exports amounted to 21.9 percent and is lower compared to the same period of the previous year when it amounted to 27.4 percent. In the structure of exports according to the standard international trade classification (SMTK), the most represented are mineral fuels and lubricants in the amount of EUR 171.1 million, which are electricity with EUR 162.8 million and others. In the first five months of this year, the value of exported electricity increased by 41.4 percent compared to the same period last year, when that amount was worth EUR 115 million.
In addition to the export of electricity, aluminum stands out, which in the first five months was worth EUR 39.4 million and was 55.4 percent less than last year in the same period, when that export was worth EUR 88.46 million.
There was also a drastic drop in the export of mineral ores, where bauxite dominates by as much as 46.4 percent. That export in the first five months was worth EUR 12.78 million, while last year in the same comparative period it was worth EUR 23.85 million.
In the first five months, EUR 15 million worth of food was exported, which is 45.3 percent more than last year. In the export of food, meat and processed products dominate with EUR 9.67 million and is 21.9 percent higher than in the same period last year, while the export of fruit and vegetables in the first five months was worth EUR 2.6 million with an increase of as much as 317.28 percent compared to last year.
In the structure of imports according to SMTK, in the first five months, machines and transport devices are the most represented in the amount of EUR 339.6 million, which are made up of road vehicles with EUR 123.5 million and others. The value of imported road vehicles in the first five months was 60.3 percent higher compared to the same period last year. In the first five months, the import of oil and its derivatives was worth EUR 109 million, which is 3.7 percent less compared to the same period last year.
In the first five months, we spent EUR 275 million on food imports, which is 26 percent more than last year in the same period. The import of meat cost EUR 60.2 million, vegetables and fruits EUR 42.3 million, and cereals and cereal products EUR 38.6 million.
The largest foreign trade partners in exports were Serbia with EUR 81.3 million, Bosnia and Herzegovina with EUR 47.8 million and Slovenia with EUR 46.6 million. The largest foreign trade partners in imports were Serbia with EUR 248.7 million, China with EUR 167.3 million and Germany with EUR 134.3 million. Foreign trade was the largest with the signatories of the Central European Free Trade Area (CEFTA) and with the European Union.
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