Peru: Merchandise exports rocket in March
Merchandise exports shot up 52.9% over the same month last year in March (February: +20.6% year-on-year). March’s result marked the strongest expansion since May 2011, in part helped by a low base effect with March 2020 coinciding with the beginning of the pandemic. Meanwhile, merchandise imports jumped 53.1% on an annual basis in March (February: +16.5% yoy), marking the best result in nearly ten years.
As a result, the merchandise trade balance deteriorated from the previous month, recording a USD 0.4 billion surplus in March (February 2021: USD 0.8 billion surplus; March 2020: USD 0.3 billion surplus). Lastly, the trend improved slightly, with the 12-month trailing merchandise trade balance recording a USD 9.0 billion surplus in March, compared to the USD 8.9 billion surplus in February.