Lebanon’s Industrial Exports up by 1.3% to $ 1.68B by August 2018

According to the Lebanese Ministry of Industry, the total value of industrial exports during the first eight months of the year 2018 rose by 1.3% year-on-year (y-o-y) from $ 1.65B by August 2017 to stand at $ 1.67 B  by August 2018.

In term of imports, the total value of imports of industrial machinery and equipment during the first eight months of the year 2018 amounted $196.8 M, recording a year-on-year (y-o-y) increase of 20.0% during the same period in 2017

In August 2018, the main exported products were “products of the chemical industries” with a total value of $41.98M down from $43.27M in August 2017, of which 31.44% were imported by Brazil with a value of $13.2M. Exports of machinery and electrical equipment came second, totaling $36.99M, down from $44.44M in august 2017, noting that Syria was the largest importer of this product, with an import value of $6.9M, followed by Iraq and Egypt with values of $4.99M and $2.52M respectively .

However, it is worth mentioning that this decrease came about as Lebanon’s exports of “machinery and electrical equipment” to Iraq and UAE dropped from $6.5 M and $3.3M to $4.5 M and$1.7M, respectively.

Prepared foodstuffs and tobacco, grasped the 3rd place this year recording a decrease by an annual 11.4% with a total value of $31.8M. Exports of “base metals and articles of base metal” took the 4th place, despite the significant drop in their export value by 27.9% to reach $24.67M comparing to the same period last year.

Overall, the primary importers of Lebanese industrial products in August 2018 were: the Arab Countries, the European Countries, and the Non-Arab African countries with each grasping a stake of 51.82%, 17.61%, and 12.26% of total exports, respectively. In details, Syria topped the export market with $22.1M, followed by Iraq and UAE with $19.37M and $16.9M respectively.

In fact, this period increase in the total value of industrial exports was due to the cumulative increase in the value all along the year, excluding June, July and the month of august 2018 that witnessed a decrease by 6.4% to reach $212.4M, down from $227M in august 2017.

Main Industrial Exports in August 2017 and 2018 ($ M)

Lebanon’s Industrial Exports up by 1.3% to $ 1.68B by August 2018

Source: Ministry of Industry

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