January exports increase

Exports increased by 15.4 per cent, year-on-year, in January 2008 along with a 41 per cent growth in Agricultural exports, the Central Bank said.

Tea exports, which were adversely affected by reduced production owing to labour unrest in January 2007, made a significant contribution of 38 per cent to the growth in total exports in January 2008, as a result of both the volume of export and the export price of tea increasing further, on a year-on-year basis.

Tea fetched a monthly average export price of US dollars 3.83 a kilogram in January 2008; the highest recorded at that time. The export price of rubber also increased further in January 2008, resulting in a monthly average price of US dollars 2.70 a kilogram. The growth in the volume of rubber exports in January 2008 could be partly attributed to this increase in the export price of rubber.

Industrial exports accounted for about 28 per cent of the growth in total exports in January 2008, with exports of garments and textiles expanding further by around 4 per cent.

Amongst other key categories of industrial exports, rubber products and diamonds and jewellery recorded significant growth, but exports of machinery, equipment and food, beverages and tobacco contracted.

Total exports in January 2008 amounted to US $ 565 million compared to US $ 489.5 million in January 2007.

As a result of the significant increase in the expenditure on imports in January 2008, the trade balance increased by 104.6 per cent, year-on-year, to US $ 611 million.