The trade balance deficit in the Corona year was 2.27 billion euros.
Shipping container.
In the Corona year 2020 there was a significant decline in imports and exports for Austria. According to preliminary results from Statistics Austria, the total value of imported goods was nominally EUR 144.20 billion, 8.6 percent below the previous year's figure, while exports of goods fell by 7.5 percent to EUR 141.93 billion. The trade balance deficit amounted to 2.27 billion euros, after 4.32 billion euros in 2019.
Adjusted for the different working days in 2019 and 2020, imports fell by 9 percent and exports by 7.9 percent, the statisticians announced in a press release on Thursday. “The corona pandemic slowed Austrian foreign trade in 2020.
In the months of March to May, which were characterized by the first corona-related restrictions, the declines were particularly sharp. These contributed significantly to the overall negative development in 2020, even if foreign trade showed more vitality again at the end of the year, “said Statistics Austria Director General Tobias Thomas.
In 2020, Austria imported goods worth 98.60 billion euros (minus 8.6 percent) from the member states of the European Union. The value of goods exported to these countries also fell by 6.5 percent compared to 2019 and amounted to 95.74 billion euros.
The trade deficit with the European Union amounted to 2.86 billion euros, after 5.39 billion euros in 2019. Around 70 percent of Austria's foreign trade was with the EU member states.
Compared to the previous year, foreign trade with third countries showed a decrease in both imports (minus 8.8 percent to 45.60 billion euros) and exports (minus 9.5 percent to 46.19 billion euros). This resulted in a balance of trade assets with third countries of EUR 0.59 billion (2019 balance of trade assets: EUR 1.07 billion).
China ranks second in terms of imports
In the past five years, China has always been among Austria's ten most important trading partners. With an import share of 7 percent (10.15 billion euros), the Middle Kingdom took second place for the first time in 2020.
The export share, on the other hand, was not even half as high and was 2.8 percent at 3.93 billion euros (10th place). Compared to the previous year, imports increased by 3.2 percent; exports fell by 11.9 percent.
