Zambian exports rise

BUUMBA CHIMBULU writes ZAMBIA’s exports rise by 4.7 per cent to K8, 929.5 million in April this year due to an increase in intermediate goods. Exports rose to K8, 929.5 million in April this year from K8, 530.2 million recorded the previous month, Zambia Statistics Agency interim statistician general Mulenga Musepa said at the monthly bulleting briefing in […]

Zambian exports rise
BUUMBA CHIMBULU writes ZAMBIA’s exports rise by 4.7 per cent to K8, 929.5 million in April this year due to an increase in intermediate goods. Exports rose to K8, 929.5 million in April this year from K8, 530.2 million recorded the previous month, Zambia Statistics Agency interim statistician general Mulenga Musepa said at the monthly bulleting briefing in Lusaka recently. Mr Musepa said exports mainly increased due to a 7.6 per cent growth in intermediate goods, which pushed up the exports earnings to K7, 718.7 million from K7.175.7 million the previous month. During the period under review, refined copper export earnings rose by 8.4 per cent to K6,720.2 million from K6, 196.6 million in March this year. “Refined copper export volumes during April 2020 rose by 2.6 per cent to 73,717.3 tonnes. Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange decreased by 2.5 per cent to US$5,048.3 per tonne in April from US$5,178.7 per tonne in March 2020,” Mr Mulenga said. He said the Non-Traditional Exports (NTEs) declined by 11.5 per cent to K1, 884 million in April this year from K2, 129.1 million the previous month. Mr Mulenga said agricultural NTEs decreased by 34.5 per cent during the period under review, while non-agricultural NTEs dropped by 5.6 per cent. Agricultural NTEs include raw cane sugar, oil cake and other solid residues of soya-beans and soya bean oil excluding crude. Non-agricultural NTEs were sulphuric acid, electrical energy and other non-alcoholic beverages. He said the major export destination in April 2020 continued to be Switzerland accounting for 35.1 per cent followed by China at 24.5 per cent, stating that these countries received copper products from Zambia. Mr Mulenga said the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was the third destination accounting for 16.9 per cent of the total export earnings, with copper concentrate sulphide being the major product transported to that country. He said these three countries accounted for 76.5 per cent of Zambia’s total export earnings. On imports, he said the decrease in imports was driven by lower in import bills for consumer goods accounting for 45.2 per cent and intermediate goods of 20.3 per cent. “Major source of imports in April was South Africa accounting for 34.7 per cent of the total imports, with fertiliser being the product mainly imported,” he said. The Sun