Foreign trade up again

International goods trade in the Netherlands was higher in November 2004 than twelve months previously. It was the ninth month in a row that both exports and imports were significantly higher than in the same month in the previous year. This also pushed the value of imports and exports in the first eleven months of 2004 to around the same level as the whole of 2003.

The value of imports in November 2004 was 18 percent higher than in November 2003 at 20.9 billion euro. Exports were also 18 percent up at 23.4 billion euro, according to provisional figures from Statistics Netherlands.

One reason for the increase in imports and exports in November 2004 was that November had two more working days in 2004 than in 2003. Import and export prices were also higher than twelve months previously. 

Imports from outside the EU increasing faster

The value of goods imported from countries in the European Union was 14 percent higher in November 2004 than in November 2003, at 11.9 billion euro; 9.0 billion euro worth of goods were imported from countries outside the EU, 24 percent more than twelve months previously. Imports from non-EU countries rose relatively faster in November than imports from EU countries. This was also the case for most previous months in 2004.

In November 2004 exports of goods to EU countries amounted to 18.4 billion euro, 18 percent more than in November 2003. Exports to countries outside the EU came to 5.0 billion euro, also 18 percent up on twelve months previously.

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