Laos recorded trade deficit of US$233 million in September

Two-way trade by Laos during September was worth more than US$1.1 billion, with the trade deficit significantly increasing to US$233 million, according to updated figures from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MoIC).

A variety of products, especially agricultural goods, were exported by Laos but this was not enough to balance two-way trade.

The trade deficit was up from the US$166 million recorded in August, the latest update on the Lao Trade Portal website showed. Laos is heavily dependent on imports to meet its requirements in areas such as energy.
Exports during September accounted for US$456 million, while imports were worth US$689 million. The main products exported by Laos were gold and gold bullion, rubber, fertilisers, gold ore, sugar, clothes, bananas, shoes, iron ore and cattle and buffaloes.
The main imports were diesel, land vehicles, gemstones, gasoline, plastic products, steel and iron-steel products, live animals, electrical cables and spare parts.
The exports of gold and gold bullion earned US$55 million, US$36 million came from rubber, US$31 million from fertiliser, US$31 million from gold ore, US$28 million from sugar, US$25 million from clothes, US$16 million from bananas, US$15 million from shoes, US$14 million from iron ore, and US$13 million from cattle.
Mechanical equipment imported by Laos were worth US$119 million, diesel US$86 million, land vehicles US$44 million, semi-precious stones US$26 million, gasoline US$24 million, plastic products US$19 million, steel and iron-steel products US$14 million, live animals US$14 million, electrical cables US$13 million, and spare parts US$12 million.
Among the export destinations, China took the lead among five countries with US$176 million, Vietnam was in second position with US$103 million, Thailand in third place with US$53 million, Australia in fourth place with US$ 25 million, and Hongkong in fifth place with US$17 million.
Thailand topped the list for imports with US$ 289 million, China was second with US$ 250 million, Vietnam third with US$ 27 million, the US fourth with US$ 24 million, and Switzerland fifth with US$ 23 million.
Critics say the main reasons for the rising trade deficit of Laos include the continuous increase of inflation and the weakening value of the Lao kip against the US dollar and Thai baht.

By Times Reporters
(Latest Update October 12, 2022)