Exports and imports of goods, January–March 2021, in current prices and in constant prices
Imports of goods increased in the first quarter
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2021-05-27 9.30
In the period January–March 2021, exports of goods decreased by 2 percent in value and remained unchanged in volume compared to the same period a year ago. At the same time, imports of goods rose by 2 percent in value and by 7 percent in volume.
Summary
- In the period January–March 2021, the value (in current prices) of Swedish exports of goods amounted to SEK 382 billion, a decrease of 2 percent compared with the same period a year ago. At the same time, the value of imports of goods increased by 2 percent and amounted to SEK 369 billion.
- In the period January–March 2021, exports of goods remained unchanged, and imports of goods increased by 7 percent in volume (in constant prices).
- Net trade shows a surplus of SEK 13 billion in the period January–March 2021. In the same period in 2020, there was a net trade surplus of SEK 30 billion.
- Compared with the previous quarter, Swedish exports of goods increased by 1 percent in value and remained unchanged in volume terms. At the same time, imports of goods remained unchanged in value and decreased by 1 percent in volume.
Detailed information about January–March 2021 (current prices)
Exports of goods to China decreased by 22 percent
Sweden’s exports of goods to EU27 increased by 2 percent and imports of goods from there increased by 5 percent compared with the same period a year ago. Exports to the euro countries increased by 1 percent, and imports from there increased by 4 percent. Among the EU countries, exports to Germany fell by 3 percent, while exports to Denmark increased by 5 percent. Exports to Finland remained unchanged. Imports from Germany fell by 1 percent, while imports from Denmark and Finland increased by 5 and 4 percent respectively.
Exports to other European countries remained unchanged, while imports from there decreased by 6 percent. Exports to the United Kingdom remained unchanged, while imports from there fell by 26 percent. During the period, imports of chemicals and rubber products, and mineral fuels and electric current accounted for the largest decrease from the United Kingdom. Exports to Norway remained unchanged, while imports from there increased by 2 percent. Exports to Russia increased by 16 percent, while imports from there fell by 23 percent. During the period, imports of chemicals and rubber products accounted for the largest decrease from Russia.
Exports to Asia decreased by 14 percent, while imports from there increased by 4 percent. Exports to China fell by 22 percent, while imports from there increased by 10 percent. During the period, exports of pharmaceutical products accounted for the largest decrease to China.
Exports to the United States decreased by 2 percent and imports from there decreased by 10 percent.
Detailed information about the first quarter 2021 (in current prices and in constant prices)
Exports of pharmaceutical products decreased by 37 percent in value and by 27 percent in volume
In the first quarter of 2021, Sweden’s exports of goods decreased by 2 percent in value, while they remained unchanged in volume, compared with the corresponding period a year ago.
Exports of machinery and transport equipment remained unchanged in value, but increased by 6 percent in volume. Within this product area, exports of passenger cars decreased by 4 percent in value, while exports in terms of volume increased by 13 percent. Exports of mineral fuels and electric current increased by 5 percent in value, while they decreased by 3 percent in volume. Minerals increased by 9 percent in value, while they decreased by 1 percent in volume. Chemical and rubber products decreased by 18 percent in value and by 10 percent in volume. Within this product area, exports of pharmaceutical products decreased by 37 percent in value and by 27 percent in volume. Exports of wood and paper products decreased by 2 percent in value and by 4 percent in volume. Within the other products area, exports of food/beverages/tobacco decreased by 4 percent in both value and volume.
Imports of passenger cars increased by 18 percent in value and by 17 percent in volume
In the first quarter of 2021, Sweden’s imports of goods increased by 2 percent in value and by 7 percent in volume compared with the corresponding period a year ago.
Imports of machinery and transport equipment increased by 8 percent in value and by 12 percent in volume. Within this product area, imports of passenger cars increased by 18 percent in value and by 17 percent in volume. Imports of mineral fuels and electric current decreased by 10 percent in value and by 13 percent in volume. Within this product area, imports of crude petroleum oils decreased by 15 percent in value and by 20 percent in volume. Imports of chemicals and rubber products decreased by 2 percent in value, while they increased by 2 percent in volume. Within this product area, imports of pharmaceutical products decreased by 4 percent in value, while they increased by 4 percent in volume. Imports of wood and paper products decreased by 6 percent in value and by 2 percent in volume, and minerals increased by 9 percent in value and by 2 percent in volume. Within the other products area, imports of food/beverages/tobacco decreased by 9 percent in value, while they increased by 1 percent in volume. Textiles/clothing/footwear increased by 6 percent in value and by 15 percent in volume.
The value index and the volume index describe nominal and real value trends over time. The real value trends describe trends in which price changes have been removed. The indices are chain indices with base year 2015=100.
The value index for exports of goods in the first quarter 2021 has increased compared to previous quarter, and is higher than the average for 2020. Export prices have increased slightly since the previous quarter. The volume index has remained unchanged compared with the previous quarter and compared with the level of the volume index in the first quarter 2020.
The value index for imports of goods decreased in the first quarter and is slightly higher than the level of the value index average for 2020. Import prices are slightly higher than in the previous quarter. The volume index has decreased compared to previous quarter, but is slightly higher than the corresponding quarter a year ago.
| Exports | Imports | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value (current prices) | Value (current prices) | ||||||||
| Region | January-March | Share in % | Change in % | January-March | Share in % | Change in % | |||
| 2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2021/2020 | 2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2021/2020 | ||
| Total | 381 708 | 389 963 | 100.0 | ‑2 | 368 585 | 360 392 | 100.0 | 2 | |
| Europe | 282 095 | 277 581 | 73.9 | 2 | 314 714 | 305 694 | 85.4 | 3 | |
| EU27_2020 | 207 145 | 202 766 | 54.3 | 2 | 253 082 | 240 418 | 68.7 | 5 | |
| EMU-19 | 155 698 | 154 774 | 40.8 | 1 | 196 365 | 188 027 | 53.3 | 4 | |
| EU28 | 227 439 | 222 989 | 59.6 | 2 | 265 386 | 257 047 | 72.0 | 3 | |
| Other European countries | 74 950 | 74 815 | 19.6 | 0 | 61 631 | 65 276 | 16.7 | ‑6 | |
| Africa | 5 957 | 7 498 | 1.6 | ‑21 | 956 | 3 065 | 0.3 | ‑69 | |
| North Africa | 3 055 | 3 945 | 0.8 | ‑23 | 500 | 550 | 0.1 | ‑9 | |
| West Africa | 683 | 782 | 0.2 | ‑13 | 7 | 1 966 | 0.0 | ‑100 | |
| Central, East and Southern Africa | 2 218 | 2 772 | 0.6 | ‑20 | 449 | 549 | 0.1 | ‑18 | |
| America | 42 021 | 43 682 | 11.0 | ‑4 | 13 367 | 13 633 | 3.6 | ‑2 | |
| North America | 35 170 | 36 018 | 9.2 | ‑2 | 10 495 | 11 527 | 2.8 | ‑9 | |
| Central and South America | 6 852 | 7 664 | 1.8 | ‑11 | 2 872 | 2 106 | 0.8 | 36 | |
| Asia | 46 373 | 53 977 | 12.1 | ‑14 | 38 721 | 37 333 | 10.5 | 4 | |
| Middle- and Near East | 7 201 | 8 449 | 1.9 | ‑15 | 878 | 1 829 | 0.2 | ‑52 | |
| Other countries in Asia | 39 172 | 45 528 | 10.3 | ‑14 | 37 844 | 35 504 | 10.3 | 7 | |
| Oceania and Antarctica | 3 880 | 6 207 | 1.0 | ‑37 | 559 | 534 | 0.2 | 5 | |
| Exports | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value (current prices) | Value (current prices) | Volume (value in constant prices) | ||||
| Share in % | Change in % | Change in % | ||||
| Commodity group according to SITC | January-March 2021 | January-March 2020 | January-March 2021 | Q1 2021/Q1 2020 | Q1 2021/Q1 2020 | |
| Total | 381 708 | 389 963 | 100.0 | ‑2 | 0 | |
| Wood and paper products | 38 516 | 39 245 | 10.1 | ‑2 | ‑4 | |
| Wood | 9 672 | 8 514 | 2.5 | 14 | ‑12 | |
| Pulp and waste paper | 6 601 | 6 412 | 1.7 | 3 | 4 | |
| Paper, paperproducts | 20 378 | 22 575 | 5.3 | ‑10 | ‑4 | |
| Minerals | 42 208 | 38 880 | 11.1 | 9 | ‑1 | |
| Iron ore and concentrates | 8 645 | 6 757 | 2.3 | 28 | ‑1 | |
| Iron and steel | 16 619 | 16 721 | 4.4 | ‑1 | ‑1 | |
| Non-ferrous metals | 8 666 | 7 477 | 2.3 | 16 | 1 | |
| Chemicals, rubber products | 53 117 | 64 969 | 13.9 | ‑18 | ‑10 | |
| Organic/inorganic chemicals | 5 281 | 5 048 | 1.4 | 5 | 12 | |
| Pharmaceuticals products | 22 875 | 36 281 | 6.0 | ‑37 | ‑27 | |
| Plastics | 9 551 | 9 002 | 2.5 | 6 | 8 | |
| Mineral fuels, electric current | 24 630 | 23 353 | 6.5 | 5 | ‑3 | |
| Petroleum products | 18 100 | 20 651 | 4.7 | ‑12 | ‑18 | |
| Machinery, transport equipment | 170 741 | 170 603 | 44.7 | 0 | 6 | |
| Manufactures of metals | 10 435 | 10 171 | 2.7 | 3 | 5 | |
| Industrial machinery | 56 068 | 56 927 | 14.7 | ‑2 | 1 | |
| Electronics, telecommunication | 38 449 | 38 749 | 10.1 | ‑1 | 5 | |
| Road vehicles | 54 703 | 54 399 | 14.3 | 1 | 13 | |
| Passenger cars | 28 875 | 30 138 | 7.6 | ‑4 | 13 | |
| Lorries, trucks[1] | 7 468 | 6 857 | 2.0 | 9 | 18 | |
| Parts, accessories | 14 619 | 13 983 | 3.8 | 5 | 10 | |
| Other transport equipment | 2 246 | 1 713 | 0.6 | 31 | 40 | |
| Instruments, photo/optical products | 8 840 | 8 644 | 2.3 | 2 | 9 | |
| Other products | 52 496 | 52 913 | 13.8 | ‑1 | 1 | |
| Food, beverages, tobacco | 23 935 | 25 030 | 6.3 | ‑4 | ‑4 | |
| Textiles, clothing, footwear | 11 215 | 10 496 | 2.9 | 7 | 9 | |
| Furniture | 4 972 | 4 967 | 1.3 | 0 | 3 | |
| Imports | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value (current prices) | Value (current prices) | Volume (value in constant prices) | ||||
| Share in % | Change in % | Change in % | ||||
| Commodity group according to SITC | January-March 2021 | January-March 2020 | January-March 2021 | Q1 2021/Q1 2020 | Q1 2021/Q1 2020 | |
| Total | 368 585 | 360 392 | 100.0 | 2 | 7 | |
| Wood and paper products | 9 682 | 10 247 | 2.6 | ‑6 | ‑2 | |
| Minerals | 29 479 | 27 035 | 8.0 | 9 | 2 | |
| Iron and steel | 11 545 | 11 590 | 3.1 | 0 | ‑6 | |
| Non-ferrous metals | 6 346 | 5 461 | 1.7 | 16 | 6 | |
| Metalliferrous ores, metal scrap | 5 317 | 3 762 | 1.4 | 41 | 17 | |
| Chemicals, rubber products | 46 044 | 47 104 | 12.5 | ‑2 | 2 | |
| Organic/inorganic chemicals | 8 042 | 9 000 | 2.2 | ‑11 | ‑5 | |
| Pharmaceuticals products | 12 740 | 13 206 | 3.5 | ‑4 | 4 | |
| Plastics | 8 864 | 9 108 | 2.4 | ‑3 | ‑4 | |
| Crude rubber, rubber products | 4 338 | 4 282 | 1.2 | 1 | 9 | |
| Mineral fuels, electric current | 29 987 | 33 223 | 8.1 | ‑10 | ‑13 | |
| Crude petroleum oils | 15 536 | 18 248 | 4.2 | ‑15 | ‑20 | |
| Petroleum products | 10 575 | 12 766 | 2.9 | ‑17 | ‑8 | |
| Machinery, transport equipment | 170 715 | 158 591 | 46.3 | 8 | 12 | |
| Manufactures of metals | 12 282 | 12 019 | 3.3 | 2 | 5 | |
| Industrial machinery | 39 719 | 38 978 | 10.8 | 2 | 6 | |
| Electronics, telecommunication | 61 118 | 54 790 | 16.6 | 12 | 20 | |
| Road vehicles | 45 722 | 41 269 | 12.4 | 11 | 12 | |
| Passenger cars | 24 074 | 20 324 | 6.5 | 18 | 17 | |
| Parts and accessories | 14 322 | 14 281 | 3.9 | 0 | 4 | |
| Other transport equipment | 2 038 | 2 071 | 0.6 | ‑2 | 6 | |
| Instruments, photo/optical equip | 9 837 | 9 464 | 2.7 | 4 | 7 | |
| Other products | 82 679 | 84 192 | 22.4 | ‑2 | 7 | |
| Food, beverages, tobacco | 37 480 | 41 380 | 10.2 | ‑9 | 1 | |
| Textiles, clothing, footwear | 21 212 | 20 063 | 5.8 | 6 | 15 | |
| Furniture | 6 740 | 6 338 | 1.8 | 6 | 11 | |
Definitions and explanations
The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union has led to the replacement of the former EU28 group in the country tables for foreign trade in goods with the EU27_2020 group. This change applies to country tables with data reported as from January 2020. The cutoff point is January 2020, rather than the actual withdrawal month February 2020, since the values in the tables are based on accumulated periods starting from January. In this text, the term EU27 is used.
Publication
This report is published in more detail in the statistical report:
Foreign trade – Exports and imports of goods January–March 2021 (pdf)
Next publishing will be
2021-08-27 at 09:30.
Statistical Database
More information is available in the Statistical Database
Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.