Peru: Trade surplus narrows further in February
Peru’s trade balance recorded a USD 461 million surplus in February, a substantial decrease from January’s USD 615 million surplus and well below the USD 727 million surplus recorded in the same month of last year.
Growth in exports weakened considerably in February, falling to a meagre 0.2% year-on-year from January’s 21.6% expansion. Growth came mainly on the back of a higher chemical and metallurgical shipments. Fishing exports, on the other hand, plunged. Meanwhile, imports rose 9.6% annually in February, below January’s 14.5% growth.
In the 12 months leading up to February, the trade surplus was USD 6.3 billion, below January’s USD 6.5 billion.