Please note that this press release was corrected 30 April 2018 at 09:36
Balance of trade
In the first quarter of 2018, the value of exported goods from Iceland amounted to ISK 137,700 million fob and the value of imported goods amounted to ISK 168,400 million fob (ISK 179,700 million cif). Thus there was a trade deficit, calculated on fob value, of ISK 30,700 million as compared with a trade deficit of ISK 37,300 million in the first quarter of 2017, at current rates of exchange.¹ The deficit of balance of trade in goods was ISK 23,300 million excluding ships and aircraft, compared with ISK 33,200 in the same period the year before.
Exports
The total value of exports of goods in the first quarter of 2018 was ISK 28,900 million higher (26.6%) than in the same period the year before at current rates of exchange. Exported manufacturing products contributed 53.4% of total exported goods and their value was 14.9% higher than in the same period the year before. Marine products contributed 39.5% of the total exports and their value was 45.2% higher than in the same period the year before, mainly due to increased exports of fresh fish and frozen fillets.
Imports
The total value of imports of goods in the first quarter of 2018 was ISK 22,300 million higher (15.3%) than in the same period the year before, at current rates of exchange, mainly because of increased imports of fuels and aircraft.
| The value of exports and imports in January - March 2017 and 2018 | |||
| Million ISK at current exchange rate | Change on prev. | ||
| Jan - March | year at current | ||
| exch. rates, % | |||
| 2017 | 2018 | Jan - Mar | |
| Exports fob, total | 108,825.7 | 137,758.9 | 26.6 |
| Marine products | 37,467.6 | 54,401.3 | 45.2 |
| Agricultural products | 4,743.0 | 5,983.1 | 26.1 |
| Manufacturing products | 64,016.4 | 73,542.2 | 14.9 |
| Other products | 2,598.6 | 3,832.3 | 47.5 |
| Imports fob, total | 146,078.5 | 168,421.3 | 15.3 |
| Food and beverages | 11,839.7 | 13,477.5 | 13.8 |
| Industrial supplies n.e.s. | 41,419.0 | 46,985.7 | 13.4 |
| Fuels and lubricants | 14,101.3 | 20,952.2 | 48.6 |
| Capital goods (except for transport) | 33,642.7 | 37,706.4 | 12.1 |
| Transport equipment | 25,208.5 | 27,271.7 | 8.2 |
| Consumer goods n.e.s. | 19,789.0 | 21,770.1 | 10.0 |
| Goods n.e.s. | 78.4 | 257.7 | 228.8 |
| Balance of trade | -37,252.9 | -30,662.4 | -17.7 |
¹Statistics Iceland does no longer publish trade in goods at constant exchange rates. The breakdown of trade in goods by currencies is available on Statistics Iceland’s website.
Monthly figures of external trade for current year are revised together with the release of figures for new months. Annual figures are published in the first half of the year after the end of the reference year. The figures are considered as final at that point of time.