2013 EXTERNAL TRADE STATISTICS OF THE GAMBIA
TABLE OF CONTENT
1.0 OVERVIEW OF THE GAMBIA EXTERNAL TRADE
2.0 DIRECTION OF IMPORTS
2.1: Imports from ECOWAS
2.2: Imports from European Union
2.3: Imports from Asia
2.4: Imports from Americas
2.5: Main imported products in 2013
3.0 DIRECTION OF EXPORTS
3.1 Exports to European Union
3.2 Exports to ECOWAS
3.3 Exports to Asia
3.4 Exports to the Americas
3.5: Main domestically exported products in 2013
1.0 OVERVIEW OF THE GAMBIA’S EXTERNAL TRADE
Theexternal trade of The Gambia for the year 2013 indicates a slight decline in total trade compared to 2012. The value of trade decreased from D16.69billion in 2012 to D16.34 billion indicating adecline of 2.1%.The value of imports drop from D12.90 billion in 2012 to D12.54 billion in 2013, down by 2.8%. The value of total export increased marginally from D3.79 billion in 2012 to D3.81 billion in 2013. The increase in total exports is due to the value of re-exports which increased from D3.20 billion in 2012 to D3.39billion in 2013, up by 6.1%.However, the value of domestic exportsdropped from D590.3 million in 2012 to D414.0 million in 2013 declining significantly by 29.86%. The value of Transit trade stood at D619.17 million in 2013. The tradebalanceis still negative in 2013, but improved by 4.2% if compared to 2012.
A summary of the trend of the value of theGambia’s external trade from 2010 to 2013 is shown in table 1 and figure 1 below.
Table 1: Summary of The Gambia’s external trade in D’ 000
Trade / 2010 / 2011 / 2012 / 2013 / %ChangeTotal Trade / 9,709,519 / 13,319,247 / 16,687,912 / 16,342,610 / -2.07
Imports / 7,977,728 / 10,137,160 / 12,898,329 / 12,535,312 / -2.81
Domestic export / 1,184,524 / 939,792 / 590,351 / 414,044 / -29.86
Re-export / 546,900 / 2,242,295 / 3,199,232 / 3,393,254 / 6.06
Total exports / 1,731,791 / 3,182,087 / 3,789,583 / 3,807,298 / 0.45
Transit / 619,168
Trade Balance / -6,245,937 / -6,955,073 / -9,108,746 / -8,728,014 / 4.18
Total Trade (US$’000*) / 346,768.50 / 459,284, / 575,445 / 451,307
Source: Gambia Bureau of Statistics (GBoS)
Note: The average exchange for 1$ is D35.90 in 2013
The share of exports as a percentage of total trade increased from 22.6% in 2012 to 23.5% in 2013. Domestic exports represented 11.21% of the total exports down from 15.58% in 2012 but account for only 2% of total external trade in 2013.
Imports accounts for 76.7% of total trade in 2013 compare to 77.3% in 2012 while re-exports account for 20.8% in 2013 compare to 19.2% in 2012.
Figure 1: Gambia’s import and export flows (2010 – 2013)
Source:GBoS
The values of the monthly imports have been consistently high above D600 million, with the highest recorded in June 2013. The value of imports in June 2013 reached D1.62 billion before dropping to a minimum of D757.2 million in August. Since August 2013, the value of monthly imports gradually increased to D1.11 billion in December 2013. The trend of the monthly imports for 2013 is shown in figure 2 below.
Figure 2: Monthly imports for 2013
The performance of domestic exports has been weak in 2013 with most of the monthly exports being below the average of D35.6 million. The values of domestic exports only reached D64.1 million in January, D73.5 million in June and D79.8 million in July 2013. The monthly performance ofre-exports has been relatively much stronger than the domestic exports with an average monthly re-exports of D281.7 million. The value of monthly re-exports were highest in September and December at D426.9 million and D401.9 million respectively. Figure 3 below shows the monthly performance of domestic exports and re-exports in 2013.
Figure 3: Monthly domestic exports and re-exports for 2013
2.0 DIRECTION OF IMPORTS
The value of the Gambia’s total imports decreased from12.9 billion in 2012 to D12.5billion in 2013representing a drop of 2.8%.The main imported products in 2013 are petroleum products, rice, vehicle and spare parts, sugar, edible oils,electrical products,clothing and textiles as well as pharmaceutical products.
Asia, ECOWAS and the EU are the main source of Gambian imports for the period under review. The share of imports from the EU region increased from 18% in 2012 to 22% in 2013. The share of imports from ECOWASregion dropped slightly from 31% in 2012 to 29% in 2013 while imports from Asia remain strong at 31% of total imports in 2013.
Table 2.1 and figure 4 below show the direction and share of imports by region in 2013respectively.
Table 2.1: Direction of Imports by region in 2012 and 2013 (D'000)
Regions / 2012 / 2013 / % CHANGEEU / 2,318,033 / 2,774,880 / 19.71%
Asia / 3,842,291 / 3,864,914 / 0.59%
ECOWAS / 3,980,942 / 3,667,115 / -7.88%
Americas / 1,296,848 / 1,667,907 / 28.61%
Others / 1,460,215 / 560,496 / -61.62%
Total Imports / 12,898,329 / 12,535,312 / -2.81%
Source: GBoS
Figure 4: The share of imports by region 2012 and 2013
2.1: Imports from ECOWAS
The share of imports from the ECOWAS region continues to be strong at 29.3% of the value of total imports in 2013. Imports from the ECOWAS region are mainly petroleum products, which constituted 80% of the value of total imports from ECOWAS in 2013. However, the value of imports from ECOWAS region decreased slightly from D3.98 billion in 2012 to D3.67 billiondue to the drop in the value of imports of petroleum products which dropped from D3.26 billion in 2012 to D2.95 billion in 2013.
Cote d’Ivoireand Senegal continued to be the main source of Gambian imports, which aremainly petroleum productsand cementrespectively. These two countries accounts for 98.6% of the value of imports from ECOWAS and 28.8% of the value of total imports in 2013.
Tables 2.2 and 2.3 below show the direction of imports and the main imported products from ECOWAS in 2013.
Table 2.2: Direction of imports from ECOWAS in 2013 by country
Country / CIF Value / As % of imports from ECOWAS / As % of Total imports(D'000)
Cote d’Ivoire / 2,875,664 / 78.42 / 22.9
Senegal / 731,285 / 19.94 / 5.8
Ghana / 21,999 / 0.60 / 0.2
Guinea / 16,474 / 0.45 / 0.1
Nigeria / 7,979 / 0.22 / 0.1
Sierra Leone / 7,675 / 0.21 / 0.1
Togo / 2,805 / 0.08 / 0.0
Others / 3,234 / 0.09 / 0.0
Total ECOWAS / 3,667,115 / 100.00 / 29.3
Source: GBoS
Table 2.3: Main imported products from ECOWAS in 2013
PRODUCTS / CIF Value (D'000) / As % of imports from ECOWAS / As % of Total importsPetroleum products / 2,951,426 / 80.50 / 23.81
Cement and related products / 280,596 / 7.65 / 2.26
Vehicles and parts thereof / 86,790 / 2.37 / 0.70
Source: GBoS
2.2: Imports from European Union
The value of imports from EU increased from D2.32 billion in 2012 to D2.77 billion in 2013, up by 19.71%. The share of imports from the EU thus increased from 18% in 2012 to 22% in 2013.This increase is partly attributed to the increase in importsof vehicles, spare parts, and wheat/flour from United Kingdom, Belgium, France and Spain.The main imported productsfrom the EU in 2013 are vehicles and spare parts (11.1%), mainly from Germany and product of milling industry (wheat/flour), predominately sourced from France (D118.3 million).
The Kingdom of Belgium, United Kingdom, France, Germany and Netherlands continue to be the main sources of imports from the EU in 2013, representing 78.9% of the total value of imports from EU and 17.5% of the total imports in 2013. The kingdom of Belgium accounts for (21.9%), United Kingdom (18.6%), France (16.3%) and Germany (11.9%) respectively.
In tables 2.4 and 2.5 below show the direction of imports and the main imports from the EU in 2013 respectively.
Table 2.4: Direction of imports from the EU in 2013by country
Country / Value of imports (D’000) / As % of imports from the EU / As % Total ImportsBelgium / 607,424 / 21.89 / 4.8
United Kingdom / 515,764 / 18.59 / 4.1
France / 452,825 / 16.32 / 3.6
Germany / 330,762 / 11.92 / 2.6
Netherlands / 282,768 / 10.19 / 2.3
Spain / 247,174 / 8.91 / 2.0
Italy / 123,618 / 4.45 / 1.0
Others / 214,545 / 7.73 / 1.7
Total / 2,774,880 / 100.00 / 22.1
Source: GBoS
Table 2.5: Main imported products from the EU in 2013
Products / Value (D’000) / As % of imports from EU / As % Total ImportsVehicles and spare parts / 299,843 / 10.97 / 2.42
Wheat and flour / 139,449 / 5.10 / 1.13
Cereals (rice) / 133,959 / 4.90 / 1.08
Electrical machinery and Equipment / 129,677 / 4.75 / 1.05
Source: GBoS
2.3: Imports from Asia
The value of imports from Asia including the Middle East increased fromD3.84 billion in 2012 to D3.86 billion in 2013. The share of imports from Asiaincreasedfrom 30% in 2012 to 31% in 2013 due to strong imports of clothing, textiles and electrical equipment from China, rice from India, flour from Turkey, vegetable oil from Indonesia and vehicles and spare parts from United Arab Emirates.
The main sources of imports from Asia in 2013are China (22.2%), Turkey(15.1%), India (13.5%), United Arab Emirates (12.8%) and Indonesia (10.1%). Thesecountries constitute 73.8% of the value of imports from Asiaand 22.8% of the total value of imports in 2013.
The main importedproducts from Asiain 2013 include flour (11.7%), edible oils (10.0%), and rice (8.1%).The direction of imports and the main imported products from Asiaare shown in tables2.6 and 2.7below.
Table: 2.6: Direction of imports from Asia in 2013 by Country
Country / Value of imports (D’000) / As % of imports from Asia / As % Total ImportsChina / 866,337 / 22.42 / 6.9
Turkey / 582,591 / 15.07 / 4.6
India / 521,461 / 13.49 / 4.2
United Arab Emirates / 493,052 / 12.76 / 3.9
Indonesia / 389,366 / 10.07 / 3.1
Pakistan / 283,016 / 7.32 / 2.3
Viet Nam / 210,610 / 5.45 / 1.7
Malaysia / 197,493 / 5.11 / 1.6
Others / 320,988 / 8.31 / 2.6
Total / 3,864,914 / 100.00 / 30.8
Source:GBoS
Table 2.7: Main imported products from Asia in 2013
Products / Value (D’000) / As % of imports from Asia / As % Total ImportsFlour / 446,473 / 11.56 / 3.60
Edible Oil / 370,359 / 9.59 / 2.99
Rice / 313,208 / 8.11 / 2.53
Vehicles / 265,700 / 6.88 / 2.14
Clothing and textiles / 230,001 / 5.95 / 1.86
Electrical Equipment / 116,516 / 3.02 / 0.94
Preparation of vegetables and Nuts / 84,676 / 2.19 / 0.68
Ceramic Products / 68,511 / 1.77 / 0.55
Source:GBoS
2.4: Imports from the Americas
The total value of imports from Americas in 2013 increased significantly from D1.3 billion in 2012 to D1.6 billion in 2013 representing an increase of 28.6%. This increase is due to strong imports of rice and sugarfrom Brazil and wheat and rice from the United States.The main imported products from the Americascontinue to be sugar (52.3%) andrice(27.1%).
The main sources of imports from Americasin 2013 are Brazil (77.3%) and theUnited States (19.1%) accounting for 96.5% of the value of imports from the Americas and 12.9% of total imports.
The direction of imports and the main imports from the Americas are shown in tables 2.8 and 2.9 below.
Table 2.8: Direction of Imports from the Americas in 2013 by country
Country / Value of imports (D’000) / As % of imports from Americas / As % Total ImportsBrazil / 1,289,729 / 77.33 / 10.41
United States / 318,992 / 19.13 / 2.57
Uruguay / 26,174 / 1.57 / 0.21
Peru / 12,185 / 0.73 / 0.10
Canada / 11,310 / 0.68 / 0.09
Paraguay / 4,469 / 0.27 / 0.04
Others / 5,050 / 0.30 / 0.04
Total Americas / 1,667,909 / 100.00 / 13.46
Source:GBoS
Table 2.9: Main imported product from Americas 2013
Products / Value (D’000) / As % of imports from Americas / As % Total ImportsRice / 452,446 / 27.13 / 3.65
Sugars / 872,833 / 52.33 / 7.04
Vehicles / 78,349 / 4.70 / 0.63
Meat / 10,751 / 0.64 / 0.09
Dairy Products / 12,185 / 0.73 / 0.10
Machinery and appliance / 21,501 / 1.29 / 0.17
Electrical Equip / 1,214 / 0.07 / 0.01
Papers and printed books / 7,399 / 0.44 / 0.06
2.5: Main imported products in 2013
Table 2.10: Main imported products in 2013
Products / Value (D’000) / As % Total ImportsPetroleum products / 2,977,295 / 24.0
Rice / 1,320,373 / 10.7
Vehicles and spare parts / 1,209,514 / 9.8
Sugar and sugar confectioneries / 902,811 / 7.3
Wheat and flour / 784,371 / 6.3
Edible oil / 627,390 / 5.1
Cement and related products / 432,754 / 3.5
Machinery and mechanical appliances / 425,352 / 3.4
Electrical products / 422,783 / 3.4
Textiles and clothing / 260,790 / 2.1
Pharmaceutical products / 244,374 / 2.0
Plastic products / 198,179 / 1.6
Dairy products / 192,114 / 1.5
3.0 DIRECTION OF EXPORTS
Thetotal value of the Gambia’s exports increased from D3.79 billion in 2012 to D3.81 billion in 2013 representing slight increase of 0.5%.The value of re-export to the ECOWAS region continues to drive the increase in the value of total exports for the period under review. The value of re-exports increased from D3.20 billion in 2012 to D3.39 billion in 2013, up by 6.1%. However, the value of domestic exportsdropped significantly from D590.35 million in 2012 to D414.04 million in 2013, down by 28.9%.
Exports to the ECOWAS region are mainly re-exports to Mali, Guinea and Senegal. The share of exports to the ECOWAS region thus increased from84% in 2012 to 89% in 2013. The value of domestic exports to the EU region in 2013 dropped significantly due to the low level of exports of ground nuts to the EU in 2013 compared to the 2011. The drop is related to the shift of exports of groundnuts in 2013 from the EU to Asia that has less stringent standards for ground nuts.
The main domestic exportsfrom the Gambiain 2013 are edible fruits and nuts, mainly cashew nuts (D194.3 million), ground nut products (D119.3 million) and fish and fishery products (D56.7 million).
Table 3.1 and figure 5 below show the direction of exports and share of exports by region in2013 respectively.
Table 3.1: Direction of exports by region in 2012 and 2013
REGIONS / 2012 / 2013 / % CHANGEECOWAS / 3,201,420 / 3,382,832 / 5.67
EU / 175,791 / 83,070 / -52.75
Asia / 364,482 / 311,211 / -14.62
Americas / 8,950 / 4,922 / -45.01
Others / 38,940 / 25,263 / -35.12
Total Exports / 3,789,583 / 3,807,298 / 0.47
Source:GBoS
Figure 5: Share of exports by region, 2012 and 2013
3.1 Exports to European Union
TheEU ispart of the main markets for the Gambia’s domestic exports which is mainly ground products, cashew nuts and fishery products. Exports of ground nuts are still very low following the drought of 2011. The value of exports to the EU thus remains low from D175.8 million in 2012 to D83.2 million in 2013 compared to D548.5 million in 2011. The relatively low level of exports of ground nuts to the EU in 2013 is also associated to a shift of exports to the Asian market due to its less stringent standards for groundnuts.
The main markets for Gambian exports to the EU are United Kingdom(D31.5 million), representing 37.7% of the total value of exports to the EU, Spain (23.2%), Netherlands (8.6%) and France (4.0%). The export to the EU in 2013 is mainly fish and fishery products with a value of D35.0 million representing 42% of exports to the EU in 2013. Other exports include fruits and vegetables.
The direction of exports by country to the EU in 2013is shown in tables 3.2 below.
Table 3.2: Direction of exports to the EU by Country in 2013
Country / Value of Exports (D'000) / As % of Export to EU / As % of Total ExportsUnited Kingdom / 31,313 / 37.69 / 0.82
Spain / 19,283 / 23.21 / 0.51
Netherlands / 15,431 / 18.58 / 0.41
France / 3,330 / 4.01 / 0.09
Germany / 2,378 / 2.86 / 0.06
Belgium / 2,177 / 2.62 / 0.06
Italy / 1,768 / 2.13 / 0.05
Others / 7,390 / 8.90 / 0.19
Total EU / 83,070 / 100.00 / 2.18
Source: GBoS
3.2 Exports to the ECOWAS region
Thevalue of exports to the ECOWAS region increased from D3.20 billion in 2012 to D3.38 billion in 2013,up by5.7%.Export to the ECOWAS region is basically re-exports which stood at D3.37 billion representing 99.7% of the value oftotal exports to the region and 88.6% of the total value of total exports in 2013. The main destinations for the Gambia’s re-exports in 2013 are Mali (40.7%), Guinea (36.4%) and Senegal (19.4%).
The direction of exports by country to the ECOWAS region in 2013is shown in tables 3.3.
Table 3.3: Direction of exports to ECOWAS by country in 2013
Country / Value of Exports (D'000) / As % of Export to ECOWAS / As % of Total ExportsMali / 1,375,127 / 40.65 / 36.12
Guinea / 1,230,098 / 36.36 / 32.31
Senegal / 654,725 / 19.35 / 17.20
Guinea-Bissau / 111,792 / 3.30 / 2.94
Sierra Leone / 4,052 / 0.12 / 0.11
Togo / 2,892 / 0.09 / 0.08
Ghana / 1,409 / 0.04 / 0.04
Others / 2,737 / 0.08 / 0.07
Total ECOWAS / 3,382,832 / 100.00 / 88.85
Source: GBoS
3.3 Exports to Asia
The total valueof exports to Asia has declined by 14.6% from D364.5 million in 2012to D311.2 million in 2013.In addition the share of exports to Asia decreased from 10% in 2012 to 8% in 2013. Cashewis the main exported products to Asia in 2013 at D163.1 million representing 52% of the value of exports to Asia.
India and Vietnamare the main marketsforGambia’s exports to the region in 2013 and the two countries accounted 84.2% of the total value of exports to Asia and 6.9% of the total value of exportsin 2013.
The direction of exports by country and the main exported products to Asia in 2013 are shown in tables 3.4 and 3.5 below respectively.
Table 3.4: Direction of exports to Asia by Country in 2013
Country / Value of Exports (D'000) / As % of Export to Asia / As % of Total ExportsIndia / 166,487 / 53.49 / 4.37
Vietnam / 95,647 / 30.73 / 2.51
China / 24,391 / 7.84 / 0.64
Singapore / 12,565 / 4.04 / 0.33
United Arab Emirates / 3,329 / 1.07 / 0.09
Taiwan, Province of China / 3,193 / 1.03 / 0.08
Malaysia / 2,180 / 0.70 / 0.06
Others / 3,429 / 1.10 / 0.09
Total Asia / 311,221 / 100.00 / 8.17
Source: GBoS
Table 3.5: Main exported products to Asia in 2013
PRODUCT / Value of Exports (D'000) / As % of Export to AsiaCashew Nuts / 162,985 / 52.34
Ground nut products / 83,589 / 26.85
Wood and Article therein; / 18,766 / 6.03
Fish and crustaceans, / 6,003 / 1.93
Edible oil / 1,573 / 0.51
Sub Total / 272,916 / 87.65
3.4 Exports to the Americas
The exports to theAmericas continue to be small. The total value of exports to the region is D9.9 million in 2013 compared to D8.9 million in 2012. The main markets in the region for period under review areUnited Stateswith a value of D2.94 million (59.7%), and Peru of D676 thousand (13.7%) of the total value of exports to Americas.Fish and fishery products were the main exported products accounting 31.4% of the value of exports to the Americas in 2013.
The direction of exports by country and the main exported products to the Americas in 2013 are shown in tables 3.6 and 3.7 below respectively
Table 3.6: Direction of exports to Americas by Country in 2013
Country / Value of Exports (D'000) / As % of Export to Americas / As % of Total ExportsUnited States / 2,936 / 59.65 / 0.94
Peru / 676 / 13.73 / 0.22
Panama / 530 / 10.77 / 0.17
Ecuador / 460 / 9.35 / 0.15
Total Americas / 4,922 / 100.00 / 1.58
Source: GBoS
Table 3.7: Main exported products to Americas in 2013
PRODUCTS / FOB Value (D’000) / As % of exports to AmericasFish and crustaceans, molluscs / 1,544 / 31.37
Iron and Steel / 196 / 3.98
Meat and edible meat offal / 147 / 2.99
Wood and article of wood / 199 / 4.04
SUB TOTAL / 2,086 / 42.38
3.5: Main domestically exported products in 2013
Table 3.8: Main domestically exported products in 2013
Products / FOB Value / As % of Total ExportsCashew nuts / 194,297 / 5.10
Groundnuts and ground products ; / 119,306 / 3.13
Fish and crustaceans; / 56,689 / 1.49
Wood and articles of wood / 19,279 / 0.51
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