Colombia: Exports rebound in February
According to the National Department of Administrative Statistics (DANE), exports returned to growth in February, growing 6.2% over the same month of the previous year. February’s print contrasted a 7.8% year-on-year contraction in January. The latest print was underpinned by a rebound in the overseas sales of fuels and products of extractive industries, and farming, food and beverages. On the downside, manufacturing exports lost steam from the previous month.
In January—the latest month for which data is available—imports decelerated, but nonetheless grew at a strong pace. Import growth moderated to 10.2% year-on-year in January, down from 15.1% in December. January’s reading reflected a double-digit surge in imports of fuels, while imports of agricultural and manufacturing products rose at a modest rate.
Meanwhile, in annual terms, the trade deficit widened to USD 1.0 billion in January from a USD 587 million shortfall in December. January’s print was also bigger than the USD 386 million deficit recorded in the same month of last year.