The International Trade Index, IMTI for 2021 showed an increase in exports by 62.8 per cent and an increase in imports by 57 per cent. The Department of Economic Planning and Statistics, DEPS in its press release informed that IMTI measures the changes in the levels of unit values and volume of merchandise exports and imports between Brunei Darussalam and trading partners around the world. Meanwhile, the terms of trade registered an increase of 43.9 per cent in 2021, which entails that the unit value of exported goods is higher compared to the unit value of imported goods. The main contributor to the positive growth was from chemicals at 37.3 per cent.
In 2021, the export increase is due to exports unit value index rose by 50.1 per cent, which was contributed from the growth in the index of mineral fuels, chemicals, and food due to the increase in prices of such products in the world market. The exports volume index fell by 10.9 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020, a decline in terms of the quantity of goods exported abroad.
The total imports in 2021 also increased by 57 per cent due to the rise in imports unit value index by 4.3 per cent. The increase in the imports unit value index was contributed by mineral fuels index; animal and vegetables oils and fats index; and miscellaneous manufactured articles index. The increase in the index of value of the goods reflects the increase in prices for those goods from external markets. The imports volume index decreased by 12.5 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020. The full report of IMTI 2021 is available from DEPS’s website as shown.
Source: Radio Television Brunei