Ecuador’s non-oil and mining exports experienced year-on-year growth of 4% between January and April 2023, according to the latest data released by the Ecuadorian Export Federation (Fedexpor). According to the syndicate, which is based on official figures from the Central Bank of Ecuador (BCE), the value of exports excluding mining and oil reached $6.309 million and represented 63% of total exports.

Although shrimp is the main export product with a growth of 4% in the period, bananas are the product that shows the highest growth and consolidates its recovery in shipments with a 14% increase in export value reaching 1388 million dollars, about 10% more than received in the first quarter. In addition, volume deliveries increased by 9%.

The main market for Ecuadorian bananas is the European Union, where 415 million dollars were exported, followed by Russia, which represents 305 million dollars of fruit exports and the first destination as a country. While it represented 204 million dollars of fruit exports to the United States.

Russia is again the fourth destination of Ecuadorian exports

Richard Salazar, executive director of the Ecuadorian Banana Marketing and Export Association (Acorbanec), assured that the sector has a higher production than in 2022 and markets such as the EU, Russia and the United States, Africa, led by Algeria, Morocco, are the markets that have increased this year in contrast to previous years.

“A big part of that is thanks to the management that the manufacturing and export sectors have done in promoting exports and in the commercial defense that we have done, especially in the EU, demanding to pay a decent price because this year the volumes have increased more towards Europe, but also the prices towards Europe repairs, especially the contractual ones,” explained Salazar, who pointed out the behavior of the Russian market, which, despite the complications of the war, benefited from the reduction in freight rates.

Meanwhile, exports of canned fish and tuna and fish decreased their export value by 2% and 32%, respectively. Other products with declining deliveries are wood and its products with -4% and products made of plastic, leather and rubber with -21%

Meanwhile, overall, until April, China was the number one destination for Ecuador’s non-oil and non-mining supplies. During this period, non-oil and non-mining exports to the Asian country grew by 17%.

The recovery of banana exports to Europe is pushing the growth of 5.76% in shipments from the port of Guayaquil

The European Union, as the second commercial destination, recorded an increase of 4% in the same period. Together with the United States, the three main destinations concentrated 67% of non-oil and mining export value.

Regarding the trade balance, between January and April, the total trade balance recorded a favorable balance of $665 million, resulting from a trade surplus of $334 million in the oil balance and a surplus of $331 million in the non-oil balance.