IN FIRST HALF OF 2023 FOREIGN TRADE TURNOVER AMOUNTS USD 11.8 BILLION

In the first half of 2023, Mongolia traded with 143 countries, and the foreign trade turnover amounted USD 11.8 billion, of which exports were USD 7.6 billion and imports were USD 4.3 billion.

Total turnover increased by USD 2.6 billion (27.9 percent), export by USD 2.3 billion (42.5 percent), and import by USD 325.6 million (8.2 percent) compared to the same period of the previous year. In June of 2023, exports increased by USD 88.4 million (7.4 percent) and import by USD 8.6  million (1.1 percent) compared to the previous month.

In the first half of 2023, the foreign trade balance amounted USD 3.3 billion in profit increasing by USD 1.9 billion (2.4 times) compared to the same period of the previous year. According to the National Statistics Office (NSO), this June the profit accounted for USD 472.7 million, increasing by USD 79.8 million (20.3 percent) from the previous month.

Trade with China in the first half of 2023 was USD 8.6 billion, accounting for 73 percent of foreign trade turnover. Hard coal equaled 61.4 percent and copper concentrate accounted for 19.1 percent. Gold made up 99.5 percent of goods exported to Switzerland.

In the first half of 2023, the growth of exports of coal by USD 2.1 billion, oil by USD 162.9 million, canned meat products by USD 82.1 million, fluorspar ore and concentrate by USD 70.8 million, iron ore and concentrate by USD 55.3 million, equine meat by USD 52.2 million affected the increase of exports by USD 2.3 billion compared to the same period of the last year. 

In June of this year, the average border price of gold decreased by USD 2.3 thousand per kg, average border price of iron ore and concentrate dropped by USD 15.5 per ton, average border price of coal decreased by USD 7.7 US per ton, and the average border price of copper concentrate increased by USD 0.4 per ton. The physical volume of coal exports reached 5.6 million tons last June, 1.4 million tons more than the previous month, and amounted USD 718.7 million, making increase of USD 139.5 million.

As of the first half of 2023, China accounted for 39.2 percent of imports, Russia 26.6 percent, Japan 8 percent, South Korea 4.6 percent, the United States 3.6 percent, and Germany 2.5 percent, making up 84.4 percent of total imports. Petroleum products accounted for 71.3% of goods imported from Russia, passenger cars made up 72.7% of goods imported from Japan, and trucks – 10% of goods imported from China.

Imports increased by USD 325.6 million compared to the same period of the previous year due to the growth of importation of diesel fuel by USD 128.2 million, trucks by USD 68.4 million, passenger cars by USD 51 million, and bulldozers, ironers, levelers, and excavators by USD 31.5 million respectively.

Exports of mineral products, precious stones, metals, jewelry, and textile products accounted for 94.2 percent of total exports, whilst 77.2 percent of imports were mineral products, machinery, equipment, electrical appliances, transport vehicles, spare parts, basic metals, products thereof, and food products. 

SOURCE: MONTSAME