Imports and exports

Updated: 8 May 2020
Next update: 8 Jun 2020
Description of indicator

Foreign Trade Statistics describes the commodity trade between Finland and other Member States of the European Union (EU) and between Finland and Third Countries i.e. the internal and external trade. Foreign Trade Statistics is the official information source on the importation, exportation, and balance of trade of Finland. Preliminary statistics on foreign trade of goods convey the first monthly data on the foreign trade of Finland. The preliminary statistics present the development of Finland's export, import, and balance of trade both in the aggregate and by the other EU Member States, Euro territory, and countries not in the EU.

The information on the trade carried on by Finland with the other EU Member States is collected from the compulsory statistical declarations provided monthly by importers and exporters through the Intrastat system of internal trade. The information on the trade between Finland and Third Countries is obtained from customs declarations, which have to be submitted on every import and export consignment. The data on both internal and external trade are put together to form the statistics on the foreign trade of Finland.

As a rule, all goods exported from and imported in Finland are recorded to statistics. The prerequisite for the inclusion in statistics is that the goods physically arrive in or depart from this country. By way of exception, water- and aircraft are recorded to statistics upon a change in the status of ownership. Among other things, neither transit transports nor economic measures of insignificant commercial value are included in the statistics. Also the smallest companies are released from the obligation to declare statistics on internal trade. Neither is foreign trade in services recorded to these statistics.

   

Exports decreased by 8.8 per cent in March

According to the preliminary statistics of international trade in goods provided by Finnish Customs, the value of Finnish exports decreased by 8.8 per cent while the value of imports decreased by 6.1 per cent in March year-on-year. The value of Finnish exports in March was EUR 5.0 billion and the value of imports was almost EUR 5.3 billion. In January-March, the total value of exports decreased by 13.1 per cent and the value of imports by 3.8 per cent year-on-year.

The trade balance was EUR 270 million in deficit in March. In January-March, the trade balance ran a deficit of almost EUR 1.3 billion. In March last year, the trade balance was EUR 125 million in deficit, but in January-March it was EUR 270 million in surplus.

Exports to EU member states decreased by 6.0 per cent and exports to non-EU countries by 12.4 per cent in March. Imports from EU-countries diminished by 2.0 per cent and imports from non-EU countries fell by 11.8 per cent in March. Calculated from the beginning of the year, exports to EU decreased by 13.4 per cent and to non-EU countries by 12.8 per cent. During the same period, imports from EU member states fell by 2.3 per cent and from other countries by 5.8 per cent.