The National Agency for Statistics and Demography reports a 68% jump in imports last March, a period during which the financial value of shipments was assessed at 486.2 billion francs against 289.4 billion FCFA, the previous month.

Imports for the month of March 2020 are valued at 486.2 billion FCFA against 289.4 billion FCFA the previous month, an increase of 68%, reports the ANSD in its bulletin of foreign trade statistics consulted at APS.

The report attributes this increase to that of external purchases of other land vehicles (30.7 billion FCFA against 7.5 billion FCFA the previous month), rice (+69.2%) and other machinery and appliances (+35.3%).

In addition, the absence of imports of crude oil in the previous month against 78.7 billion FCFA in March reinforced this increase, underlines the same source.

However, a moderation of the increase is reported due to the decline in imports of machinery and equipment for food industries (-53.9%) and corn (-34.7%).

Compared to March 2019, imports increased by 56.8%. Their accumulation at the end of March 2020 stood at 1123.4 billion FCFA against 965.5 billion FCFA for the corresponding period in 2019, an increase of 16.4%, notes the ANSD.

It indicates that the main products imported during the period under review are crude petroleum oil (78.7 billion FCFA), other machinery and equipment (56.5 billion FCFA), finished petroleum products (40.5 billion FCFA), other land vehicles (30.7 billion FCFA) and rice (22.9 billion FCFA).

"A negative trade balance of 332.8 billion"

Senegal's main suppliers were France (20.2%), Nigeria (16.2%), China (8.9%), the Netherlands (3.8%) and Turkey (3. 7%), mentions the structure in its foreign trade price statistics.

At the same time, the country recorded a negative trade balance of 332.8 billion FCFA, against -126 billion FCFA the previous month (February). A deterioration in connection with the deficit vis-à-vis Nigeria (-77.5 billion francs against a positive balance of 2 billion in February), notes the report.

ANSD also mentions a strengthening of the deficit vis-à-vis France (-94.5 billion FCFA against -57.9 billion FCFA in February 2020) and China (-39.0 billion FCFA against -20.6 billion FCFA in the previous period).

On the other hand, the reduction in the deficit vis-à-vis Russia (-8.1 billion FCFA against -12.6 billion FCFA in the past month) has mitigated the deterioration of the trade balance deficit, we learned. .

The cumulative balance, at the end of March 2020, deteriorated to stand at -532.4 billion FCFA against -410.1 billion FCFA for the corresponding period in 2019, summarizes the National Agency for Statistics and of demography.